


The Last Champion of Gaea

by urisarang



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: AU Multiverse, AU Mysterio is a real hero, Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fix-It of Sorts, Irondad, M/M, Nearly 80k words to get to a 1st kiss kind of slow burn lel, Quentin Beck Is A Good Guy, Recovery, Slow Burn, Tony Stark Lives, Touch-Starved, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2020-07-28 05:09:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 36
Words: 143,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20058541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/urisarang/pseuds/urisarang
Summary: Quentin Beck is a Champion of Gaea, the goddess that made their world and gave life to every living being on it.  He was chosen at birth to be her avatar, to protect her people, and guide them--but when a force more powerful than they have even known comes hell bent on destroying everything they are powerless to stop it.((AU where Quentin really is from a different universe and has powers but instead of popping up in FFH he finds himself at the battle for the gauntlet in Endgame))русский Translation Here





	1. Now that's thinking with portals

**Author's Note:**

> I have so many other things I should be working on but instead I went and watched Far From home a second time and wrote this. Sorry, not sorry.
> 
> This was supposed to be a short little thing exploring the idea of what I would do with a powered up Mysterio, instead this looks like its gonna be a whole thing cause my brain ran away with the idea and I have no control anymore.

It has been nearly five years after The Cataclysm that destroyed this world and every living thing on it. Nearly five years since Quentin has seen another living, breathing person outside of his nightmares--and he's tired. Tired of the weight of his failure to protect his home, his people, his family. 

Soon it will be another anniversary of his world's destruction, since the human race was wiped out. He can still hear the world's screams as every man, woman, and child simultaneously burst into flames that consumed their bodies until naught but ash remained. The world cried out as one in a symphony of agony before falling silent.

Everyone he had ever known, everyone he had ever loved, all gone. He wasn't even home when it happened, he wasn't even there for his family in their final moments.

********************

There was an intense spike of raw, primal energy out in the cosmos so powerful that it brought Quentin to his knees. He didn't even spare a moment to say anything to his family, to his wife, not even their daughter before he was flying out of the house to investigate. If he had but taken the time to tell them he loved them. He should have stayed with them, maybe, just maybe, he could have protected them.

But he didn't. He couldn't.

He was The Archmage, his duty was to the entire world; had been since his birth and the death of the one before him. There is, was, will always be, an Archmage on Gaea. For all of human history there has been an Archmage to protect humanity, when one falls another rises to take their place.

Gaea's Champion, Marcus Antony died the same moment as Quentin Beck was born into this world, from that moment on his fate was sealed. The light that faded from Marcus's eyes as old age took him was not a flame that could be extinguished, only exchanged. As the green spark went out of Marcus's eyes it grew within Quentin's. 

It was his destiny to use the gifts Gaea had bestowed upon him to protect and help his people. The life of a Champion, of the Archmage is full of responsibility and hardship. Many do not take wives nor husbands and almost none have dared to raise a family.

Many wrote that they believed it was better to live a life apart so they would never have to choose one life over another. Some, like Beck, did choose to raise families and their fates were not always tragic -- but sometimes they were. It was selfish of him to marry her, but he could not resist her beautiful brown eyes, and when she wanted a child? How could he say no when he wanted one just as much?

The day Hope was born was the best day of his life. Never had he seen anything as magical, as breathtaking, as her bright blue eyes blinking open to see the world for the first time. Never before had his world been full of more rightness and love than when she came into it.

But he would never see those eyes again. Never hear her struggling to keep her giggles quiet while she waits for him to 'stumble' into another one of her pranks after he comes home. Never would he feel her fall asleep in his arms while he read her bedtime stories well into the night. 

He had left her, and her mother to die in that house without him. His duty to humanity out weighed that of his duty as a husband, as a father that day. He would not have been chosen by Gaea if he could not make that choice, but there is nothing he regrets more. 

He had flown off and for what? He wasn't able to stop it, whatever it was. He went up, up, up above the atmosphere relying on his suit's oxygen supply. He, like all before him, has an innate sense for magic and power but never before has he felt anything like this. Far off in the cosmos something unspeakable has happened, the feeling of wrong broils in his gut leaving him fighting the urge to vomit.

Quentin pushes the feeling of horror down, this is what he was born for. Whatever the unholy affront to nature is, it's approaching at speeds that defy the laws of the universe and he needs to be ready. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath he searches for his center, feels the flame of power within him and stokes the flames with all his might until it is a roaring inferno.

Blue eyes sparking with green power reopen, he's never pulled out this much power, but he's never thought he would face something like this. As the conduit of Gaea's power his senses come alive in ways previously not thought possible. He can see in his mind's eye as the riptide of destructive wrong rips through the galaxy. 

The destructive wave tears the very essence of life from all that it touches. Quentin has fought destructive forces, stopped meteors, and contained explosions with the power granted to him, but this? This goes beyond destruction, beyond magic, beyond anything he's ever known. 

The Archmage shudders as he feels the life being ripped out of world after world as the wave advances. He doesn't think his powers will be enough. He's certain its not enough in fact--but what choice does he have?

He looks back at his world, can feel every single life that is counting on him. He can't fail them, he has to be enough. He turns back around to face the incoming wave of death. It's so close now, he cannot waste anymore time for it will be upon them soon.

Quentin summons great green clouds of magical energy around his outstretched hands. His powers are innate, they follow his will and his only thought is to protect his world. To shield it from the oncoming storm. The power in his hands grows and the swirling smoke expands and expands until he has a great rotating disc, not unlike a hurricane, in each hand. 

A spike of pain behind his eyes as the wave enters their solar system, he's out of time. Letting loose a battle cry he moves his hands together in front of him merging the two hurricanes of raw power into one massive swirling storm. He flies further out and pushes the storm forward as it grows and grows to a size meant to shield his world.

Between one blink and the next the wave is upon him. The destructive energies hit the swirling storm of his shield with an explosion of force that sends him reeling back, but he doesn't let his concentration slip. He cries out as the wave of death tears at his powers, sucking at his life force pushing him further and further back.

He's losing ground fast as the rolling wave cuts through his shield, but with a fierce roar he pushes back with everything in him. For a moment, one beautiful moment, it looks like it will be enough. His magic flares brighter than any sun and holds against the advancing destruction.

A bubble of green magic surrounds the world as the tide rolls over them. Sweat flows like rivers down his head and he feels the rush of warm blood flowing from his nose, from his ears, as he strains to keep the shield up. 

He's never used so much power before, it's more than his body was ever meant to channel and he knows it. Can feel it tearing him apart from the inside, it will kill him but not now. 

Not yet. He will live long enough to save them, he has to. 

But fate has other plans for the last Champion of Gaea. The magic barrier flickers as the life inside its host, Quentin, begins to ebb. There can be no power without a conduit, without a body to wield it. Black spots appear in his vision and in the green barrier as he loses the battle to remain conscious.

The great swirling disc of green breaks apart above him as his hold over the magic slips. As his hold on life slips. It was inevitable, he could never hope to win against death itself. Nothing can.

Time seems to slow as death comes for him, for his world, for every living thing. He watches helplessly as darkness over takes his world. The Archmage can hear every scream of agony, every cry for help that won't come. He clutches at his chest, his heart seizing as the flames of life he's sworn to protect are snuffed out.

He clenches his eyes shut, unable to bear watching the world he loves grow dark. Tears spill from his eyes and his chest feels hollow, his heart is being ripped out. The indomitable will that the Chosen are known for fails him like he failed his world. 

As his will falls so does he. Gravity pulls the wayward son back to Gaea.

All he's ever loved and lived for is lost. He is the last of the once great line of Champions, when his life too is snuffed out there will be none to take up the mantle. All the great things the people of Gaea have accomplished, all the tales of wonder and love will be lost.

To be wiped out as if they never existed, as if they never mattered? It breaks something fundamental within him. All that they were, all that they could have become? Just gone, like nothing. The once green and beautiful world becoming barren and monotone, is something Gaea cannot abide by.

The flickering, barely there life of her champion is fading, and with it so is hers. She has done much to preserve the life around her she so cherishes, but she could not save them. Cannot save herself.

But she can save him. She slows his fall back to her and gently guides him down to lay on her once fertile soil. 

He is the last of her beautiful children, so special and so strong. She has loved all her children since the beginning of her time, but the spark of life, the spirit in Quentin is much like her own. Within him is the potential for greatness that rivals even her own, but even more important than that is his love of life. His heart is so pure and full of love for every shape that life may take.

All her Champions have held sparks that set them apart from the rest of her children, but his is the first with the ability to become a flame in his own right. She knows what must be done, and she hopes that he will understand her choice and forgive her.

Gaea is an ancient being and knows exactly what the wave of death is. It is a wish made form, granted by the primal forces of the universe itself. What sort of creature could wish for all life to be wiped out she cannot even begin to fathom, but all is not lost. The universe seeks balance, where life once thrived it can thrive again. 

The wish given form goes against the very fabric of the universe, it will follow it's master's orders but much like the genies of days gone by there is always a loophole. Being alive for countless millennia she has learned how to turn seemingly impossible odds in her favor.

With that in mind she holds back and watches as the spark of life flickers and goes out in her Champion. She waits until the last flame of her fire in him goes dark and releases her own hold on life. The wave mercilessly tears even her great life force apart before moving through the rest of the solar system, the rest of the universe until not one thing remains breathing.

The wave of pure death fades as the last living being ceases to be. It is only then that the spell she cast is triggered and the wisps of her green power surge once more. One last time to fill the lungs of her Champion. 

All that she was is gone, but all that she might have been? All the potential for life? It's still there, just waiting for someone to will it into existence. If there is a will strong enough to come back from even death it is that of a mother, of a father, to save their child. 

There is a sharp gasp and bright blue eyes greet the universe once more.

****************

As time went by Quentin's connection to Gaea, at least what she was, what they are now, grows stronger. He spent much time grieving all that he's lost, but their work is too important to put off. Their time together is limited after all, once his body dies if he has not done enough she might never again be born into another.

Nothing might be born again ever.

He cannot let everything end here, with him, and so he wanders the planet leaving the seeds of life everywhere they go. They don't talk as much as they just know, the Champions of old had always spoken of their connection to Gaea being that of visions of what they must do. In times of great crisis the heroes of old wrote of being overcome with divine feelings that guided them through their darkest hours.

Quentin himself had always felt the warmth of Gaea within him, could feel gentle pushes in the right direction, but before the Cataclysm he had no idea of how much that would change. He's no longer himself, and she is no longer herself.

To get around the loophole they both had died and were reborn together as something new. If they were not of the same blood, of the same mind, heart, and soul it could never have worked. But the universe is sneaky, it knows all that has ever been and all that could be and it worked tirelessly to have this come to pass.

As powerful as Gaea was, she was naught but a pawn moving across the board. The unknowable cosmic intelligence always working behind the scenes in ways that cannot be fathomed. Little shifts, tiny nudges here and there to make sure the universe does not grow stagnant and die from one twisted being's wish.

Where Quentin walks plants sprout, where he swims tiny creatures develop. Its very slow and taxing work, Gaea had used nearly every last bit of her power just to bring them back to life. Like a battery they create more power between the two of them but it is very hard on his body.

Though he may be the closest thing to Gaea that ever will be, he is still a mortal man. Gaea has to remind him of it often when they are working, her precious son is so eager to push himself harder. The very will that was able to bring them back, is the same will that threatens to shorten his brief life even further. 

There is great sadness and loneliness in his heart, it threatens to overwhelm him from time to time. If it were not for the warmth of love Gaea radiates in their heart he may have succumbed to the darkness and let death take him to rest with his family. He feels so alone even with Gaea with him, by his very nature he was meant to be surrounded by people. The Champions have always been natural leaders that have crowds flocking to them, to go from that to being the last man alive? 

He just has to push it out of his head and focus on what they are doing. He swore he would not be the last, that the line would not break with him. So he must keep going no matter the cost until the planet once again grows fertile and life can begin again anew.

A burst of magic shocks him from his thoughts. He feels another burst of magic being used a few miles south of him and without another thought flies off to investigate. It doesn't feel anything like the wave that destroyed everything, but it does feel wrong in a way that not even that wave of pure death had felt like.

His heart hammers in his chest with a mix of excitement and fear, it doesn't feel like its dangerous but he can't be sure. The flight takes only seconds before he can just make out what is causing the disturbance. 

Giant shimmering gold portals are opening up all around. As he flies closer the otherworldly feeling intensifies, even the warmth of Gaea within him feels confused. The closer they get the more the feeling changes from confusion to hope. 

There is movement within the portals, there is life. His heart fills with wonder, he hadn't thought he'd ever get to see another person. He figured he'd have maybe 60 more years of wandering the planet with nothing but some plants and maybe a few fish for company. 

He's never been so happy to be wrong in his life.

"What is this?" He asks the light within him, "It feels. . .It feels like this can't be here. The energy feels, it feels strange like-like maybe..." Quentin trails off scared to give voice to his fantastical hope least it be taken away by cruel reality.

He hovers above the portals and watches the scene that unfolds below him. Some sort of war, a great war is about to be fought. These portals from. . .where ever they are from are opening up to let hundreds upon hundreds of people, creatures and ships through. They are forming ranks for a great battle, the likes of which he has never seen before.

His heart thunders in his chest, he can feel a pull towards the portals. The suddenly intense desire that can only be her will.

The pull, the need to go through thrums in his veins, but he doesn't understand. They have work to do here, whatever this is? It's got nothing to do with them and yet his heart yearns for them. 

The tension on the other side of the portals is thick enough to make it across to this universe. Whatever it is they are facing, it's important. As important to them as preventing the Cataclysm was to them.

He can tell from their faces, the determination, the desperation. His heart calls out to help, it is what he was born to do but what about Gaea? He feels as though his heart is being torn apart with the conflicting needs, just as it had nearly five years ago.

"But what about you? What about all of this?" He begs gesturing to still half barren world around them. "Are you asking me to give this up, to- to risk all that we fought and struggled for here?" 

A vision over takes him of the world they are in now very, very slowly being reclaimed by life. Far slower than what they had previously projected, but there is still hope. He feels the warm embrace of green smoke surround him like a mother's caress.

She wipes away the tears he cries knowing that this is a goodbye. She always hated the thought of her son suffering a barren world all alone, but it seems the universe has given her one last gift. This is a chance, the only chance he'll ever get. 

So what if the time scale goes back another million years before sentient life walks her fields again? It is a small price to pay for the happiness of her favored son. The mortal had never once forsaken their cause, not even after all that he has sacrificed, all that he has lost. Is he not deserving of a reward? 

Go. She tells him with a whisper of winds that pushes him towards a portal. He reopens his eyes and he is a few feet from the portal now and the sounds of battle can be heard. He hesitates at the edge of the portal, suddenly afraid. He's about to lose his connection to Gaea, the thing he's had since the day he was born. It's not supposed to be like this. The only way a Champion loses their connection to Gaea is through death. It feels like a betrayal to even consider giving it up. It's like cutting off a part of himself, but he knows he can't take her with him. She needs to be here, to make sure she can be born again in another millennia when people like him walk her lands again.

Those thoughts are cut off when a familiar spike of primordial energy makes its way across the portal. 

It's happening.

It's happening to them. Suddenly his worries and hers disappear like smoke in the breeze when the reality of what is at stake hits them both. They have to go, what happened in their world, in their universe should never be allowed to pass.

Whatever the cost, they have to prevent another Cataclysm and to do it they will have to do it together. Once they fly through the portal all hope of Gaea being reborn in their universe will die. They've done enough that life will go on without their help, and without her guidance. But when Quentin eventually dies? He'll take her with him.

Its the easiest choice the millennia old being has had to make. No more suffering children, no grief stricken mothers and fathers. Not this time, not if they can help it. They let themselves feel all the seeds of life they've planted here for one last time before they are flying through the portal.

**************************

They stagger in mid air as the portal closes behind them and they are cut off from their world. The shock of it is overwhelming, as is the shock of being surrounded by so many people after so long alone. Quentin fights to keep his composure, he has a job to do and this time?

He won't fail. They both are in this all or nothing. 

The battle is already well under way, it should be hard to tell which side is the 'right' one amidst the chaos but it's plain to see it on their faces. One side is full of grim determination that resonates with their own, while the other is wild with blood lust. 

He closes his eyes for a moment to gauge how much power they have between the two of them, and it's not much compared to when they had tried to hold off the death wave by themselves; but well placed it might be enough. After all, this time they are not alone. They have no way of knowing if a similar battle was fought and lost in their universe to prevent the Cataclysm but they do know it'll be different here with them. 

The universe is always working in mysterious ways after all. What could be a bigger loophole to capitalize on than help from another universe? 

Quentin reopens his eyes and with Gaea's help scans the battle field until they find the source of everything. The primal forces of this universe are in the form of stones set in some sort of gauntlet. They watch as an elaborate game of keep away unfolds, it's stunning to see so many different people and creatures working together for one goal. 

It is doubly more impressive to see such differing powers between so many. Back on Gaea there was only ever The Archmage who held special power and that was only granted by Gaea herself. They watch as a black cat creature bounds off with the gauntlet staying just a step ahead of pursuit until it takes a glancing blow and loses it's grip.

They fly towards it but a small spider-like creature gets to it first. The humanoid spider's moves are mesmerizing to behold. It doesn't dodge, it is more like it dances around its opponents with how gracefully it moves. It even performs back flips while dodging projectiles in mid air.

It is easily the most graceful, beautiful display Quentin has ever witnessed, at least until the spider creature is caught by a woman on a winged horse. Both the rider and the flying horse have an other worldly beauty about them, a divinity that resonates with Gaea. 

This universe, even just those present in this battle, are so diverse it is breathtaking. From small talking animals to giant men and all shades of creatures in between. If nothing more, if this is where they meet their end, it will have been worth it. Just to see such beauty and diversity.

The reverie that fell upon them disappears as quickly as it came on when the humanoid spider is knocked out of the air. It tumbles to the ground but they are able to extend their power out quickly enough to cushion it's fall. Before they arrive a flying woman radiating brilliant light lands before the humanoid spider who can be no more than a boy now that he's gotten close enough to see his young scared face.

Quentin's stomach turns at the prospect of having children on the battlefield, about how desperate they all must be. Not that it isn't for a good reason, but seeing the kid's red ringed eyes and how he trembles holding onto the gauntlet lights a fire of outrage within the older man. 

Quentin watches as the young boy hands off the gauntlet to the radiant woman. They watch in awe as other women on the battlefield join ranks to run escort around their apparent leader. They do not know yet what the endgame goal is with the game of keep away, but these people are by no means inexperienced in the ways of war.

As one the women fly, run, and jump away leaving the trembling boy in their wake. Quentin spares a few moments to check on the kid. As he flies up the kid twitches at the unfamiliar face but his eyes lock onto the trails of green mist around Quentin and his shoulders relax ever so slightly.

"Hey man, uh thanks for the you know catch. Peter, um my name is Peter Parker by the way. In case you were wondering, or something." The boy nervously rambles as his eyes flirt around the battlefield on the lookout for danger.

"Nice to meet you Peter, I'm Quentin, Quentin Beck. You did good kid, but it looks like your part is over now. Can you get somewhere safe?" 

The kid blinks in surprise then begins to nod rapidly. "Yeah okay, yeah I can do that. Umm good luck Mr. Beck." 

Quentin gives the kid a salute that is shakily returned before he flies off in pursuit of the primal energy stones. He catches up quickly, but not quickly enough as he watches a large purple man throw a weapon at a vehicle that the women were all heading towards. When it collides with the vehicle it explodes in a brilliant blast of light sending the glowing woman sprawling.

Quentin curses under his breath before tapping into their reserve power for a boost of speed. They have to get there before the purple man. Gaea tells him by way of his heart squeezing in his chest that if they don't prevent the monster from using the primal energy stones the same fate that befell their universe will befall this one. 

That cannot happen. Not again. Not ever.

The bright woman is back on her feet and fighting the purple man mere seconds after being hit by the explosion. They watch as they struggle for control over the primal energy stones. At first it seems as if the woman has the upper hand but the purple giant pulls one of the stones from the gauntlet and uses it to blast the woman off of him. 

Quentin reaches out with his hands as he cuts through the air willing two tendrils to appear and wrap themselves around the purple man's arms preventing him from replacing the stone in the gauntlet. The purple man roars in surprise and rage as he fights against The Archmage's magic.

The magic will not be enough to hold the creature, not with how limited their reserves are but it just needs to hold him long enough for them to get up close and personal. The purple one notices their approach at the last second, his eyes widening in surprise just before Quentin slams into him fists first.

The force of the hit knocks the air from the purple giant's lungs and his left hand holding the lone stone loses its grip. Quentin wastes no time securing it with a tendril of his magic while he wrestles the gauntlet off the creature's other arm. Despite the force of the blow and the surprise attack that was launched it is no easy feat to wrestle it off of the monster's hand.

Quentin is spitting blood as he once again tears his body apart in effort to prevent the death of everyone and everything. It takes everything they have, every last ounce of their reserves to pry the gauntlet from the monster's grip. 

They fly up away from the ground to catch their breath for but a moment after they get the gauntlet from the monster.

Gaea knows naught what the people of this universe's goal was with the primal energy stones, but she knows how to use them. What it will cost. She knows and so does her Champion, he knows in his heart what will happen when they use the stones.

A smile curves his lips, it's not often you are given a second chance. A second chance to save the world, to save everyone. He would die a thousand deaths to keep this from happening. Already has died for this once in fact. So what's one more death in the grand scheme of things?

"This is for my family! For my world! For Gaea!" Quentin yells across the battlefield as he replaces the missing stone and puts on the gauntlet.

The surge of power rips through his body and a cry tears from his throat from the pain. He can feel the power of the universe coursing through him at a cellular level, much like when he channels Gaea's strength but infinitely more powerful. Infinitely more deadly. 

This power was never meant to be harnessed. Not even by the Gods. Even at the peak of Gaea's power she could not have hoped to use the primal energy stones without great cost, and with how reduced she is now? It would be the death of both of them.

Quentin's heart warms within his chest and he's glad to have Gaea here with him at the end. The warmth in his chest grows until it is spilling out of him. His body begins to glow in the green light of Gaea's love, of her power with the power of the gauntlet fueling them.

He closes his fist and wills that those that wished to use this gauntlet for evil, for death and those who followed those commands would cease to be. A rainbow of lightning arcs from the gauntlet up his arm burning his flesh when it strikes. 

The wish, and then the cost. Nothing is ever free. He is ready to pay up but then the green glow around him grows in intensity and his heart seizes in his chest as he realizes what she means to do.

"No!" He cries out but it's too late, always too late. He feels Gaea severing the connection between them as she takes form around him. The green mist rises out from inside him taking form as The Mother. 

She has two sets of arms and long flowing hair held back by vines that twist and move with her. Her pale skin is accented by flowers of every color imaginable that bloom in her flowing dress. She smiles down upon her son, brushing a stray lock of his hair from his face and wiping his tears away.

She floats above him the gauntlet arcing lightning across her arm instead of his. There is no avoiding the price, but perhaps they need not both pay it. She touches one finger against his chest, above his heart. She can feel the wisps of their power still within him and she is glad.

When she breathed life back into him after the Cataclysm it had fundamentally changed him, changed them both. She will always be a part of him just as he is a part of her. 

His eyes beg her to stop even as he knows in his heart that she cannot. That she will not. She is the mother and she will not abide watching the last of her children die again. 

The power of this universe tears her asunder. Her form explodes in a brilliant flash of green light that momentarily blinds everyone on the battlefield and with that Gaea is no more.

The last wisps of her power holding Quentin afloat give out sending him plummeting to the ground. He is so overcome with grief and shock that he doesn't even try to brace for the impending impact, but instead of hitting the ground and breaking his bones he feels someone catch him.

His eyes struggle to focus on the blurry face before him but eventually succeeds and he's greeted by the spider kid's goofy smile. 

"Hi again. I didn't get away, but you know that was probably a good call cause well, I don't think anyone else was ready to catch you and I totally owed you. From earlier, with the weird cloud cushion and everything. But yeah um hi." 

The kid's awkward rambling cuts right through the fog of his grief and Quentin lets out a surprised bark of laughter. He reaches up with his good arm and grips the kid's shoulder in thanks. His hand squeezes the kid's shoulder weakly before falling limp to the ground as the last of his energy leaves him and he passes out.


	2. Who the hell is Beck(y)?

"Who the hell is this guy?" Tony asks as he stumbles forward towards Peter and the now limp form in his arms. Peter looks up at him and Tony's heart stops all over again in his chest. He doesn't know when he'll get used to seeing the kid alive again, but by god is he grateful for it now. 

"Um I don't know really." Peter admits with a shrug, "He sorta caught me with his magic? I don't know, he said his name was uh, um, Beck? Yeah! Quentin Beck. He told me to go find somewhere safe then he flew off and well you know." The teenager makes a weird waving motion with his hand unwilling to articulate what happened.

Tony blinks as he processes, he had almost forgotten how much the kid rambled--rambles--when he's nervous. God he's missed the kid so damn much. Thank god he's got him back now.

He shakes his head, focus, and he looks over to the wizard. The conscious wizard. The one with the copy cat facial hair who had signaled to him just before the mystery man burst on the scene. He had held up one finger, and Tony had thought he had known what it meant. What he would have to do, how much he was about to hurt Pepper and Morgan.

Obviously the signal meant something else, maybe it was the signal for 'just wait'. Which don't get Tony wrong, he's grateful, damn grateful to not have to make Pepper a single mother but it doesn't add up. Tony had spent countless hours awake at night worrying about the one solution and why he was one of those left alive. It had to mean that he was integral to the plan that Strange could not out right tell them. 

Maybe it was his time travel theorem, maybe this guy was pulled from another age. Maybe it was the only way to get a hold of Merlin. Tony sure as hell doesn't even pretend to understand the role magic plays in the universe, nor he doesn't want to.

"Strange, he one of yours?" Tony asks the wizard as he sees him approaching with his sentient cloak billowing without wind. Pretentious bastard that he is.

"Not one of mine." Strange answers, "I don't understand how he can be here. I watched millions of possible futures, I watched them all and this man was in none of them. This can't be possible." 

"I always said magic was impossible and yet here we are." Tony gestures with a shrug.

"No you don't understand!" Strange raises his voice, losing the calm control he seems to always have no matter the situation. It sets off warning alarms inside Tony's head to hear the frustratingly stoic man have an outburst like this. 

"In this future I set in motion? I condemned you to die." Tony knew it, had known it for a long time if he were being honest--but to hear it said aloud? That's a whole other thing. "The one and ONLY way we won was if you took the gauntlet. I knowingly set this in motion because it was the only way. Whoever this is? He should not, cannot be here.

"His whole aura is wrong, like he is on a different wavelength. I've been to other dimensions, I've fought ancient demigods and forces of nature that you could not even begin to understand. But this man? He's different from them all, he's not like anything I've ever seen."

"Maybe you need to get out more." Tony jokes without much feeling behind it, "Look who ever or what ever he is? He just saved our asses! Mine in particular so can we just be grateful for one second? Look at him, he's out cold, it's not like he's much of a threat like this."

Strange begrudgingly agrees with a nod that promises he's going to look into it. The doctor in him finally makes itself known as he walks over to the mystery man laying in Parker's lap. He narrates his observations as he works as was his habit in surgery.

"Strong but erratic heart beat, likely due to shock. Regular pupils dilation, no sign of concussion, body is warm and shows no obvious signs of bleeding but we can't rule out internal." Strange stops his impromptu medical examination and switches to his wizarding knowledge.

His hands flash through spells so that he can see if the magic user has damaged chakra lines and is surprised to find none. Nearly all humanoid magic users have chakra centers and lines throughout their body to ease their use of magic but this man has none. 

Frowning he fires off another spell that will allow him to see active magic and is surprised when every part of the man has a very faint glow. The Sorcerer Supreme has encountered beings made of pure magical energy before, not unlike Dormammu, but their forms are not meant for prolonged time on this plane of existence.

There is the possibility that this is a celestial, but those are so rare that one as unique as this one would be well known to the magical community. The aura alone is troubling, it almost hurts to look at. Like a picture that is always out of focus no matter how much you squint. 

The Sorcerer Supreme does not enjoy surprises, and yet Tony is right. Without this he'd have the weight of Tony's sacrifice on his conscience until the end of his days. He knows he made the right choice setting this all in motion, would do it again if he had to, but he is grateful that the choice was taken out of his hands.

Eventually they come to an agreement to move him, along with all the other Avengers to one of Tony's secret bases that he isn't supposed to have, but with Strange and Wong standing guard just in case. Many of the Wakandans choose to return home with the help of the wizards but the majority of the heroes want to stick around to thank the mystery man when he wakes up.

******************

A rhythmic beeping slowly makes itself known to the sleeping man. The steady tempo invades his foggy dreams luring him back to the conscious world. As his senses slowly come alive he is able to hear unfamiliar deep voices speaking in hushed tones around him. He cannot make out the words, isn't awake enough for that yet, but he doesn't have any fear tugging at his heart so he's not worried. Gaea wouldn't let him sleep around anything that would mean him harm.

The thought of Gaea bounces around his head not sticking, there is dissonance within him. That's when it hits him, he doesn't feel anything. There is no comforting warmth nor love within him. Because she's gone, gone, gone, gone.

The once steady beeping picks up pace as panic floods his system. How could he have forgotten? The light of Gaea that has been with him his entire life has left him never to return. Never, ever. The sounds around him grow in intensity and even without her guidance he knows he needs to open his eyes.

There are three men in the room Quentin doesn't recognize are all staring at him with varying expressions that range from alarm (from the bald man in simple robes), concern (from the man dressed not unlike an Archmage of times passed), and sad understanding look (from the man covered in a metallic red and gold suit that moves with its wearer so well it could be a second skin). 

They are saying things to him, asking him questions but he can't understand them. Two of the men are crowded in his space, so close, too close. Quentin pushes himself back against a bed? His eyes flicker about the room rapidly trying to get a sense of where he is.

It's clean, white, and full of equipment. It doesn't look like a holding facility, or a place for nefarious deeds. It has the same feel as hospitals back home. 

Home. 

He has no home, hasn't had one in years. They say home is where your heart is but without her, without his heart? Can he ever really have a home again? Will he be doomed to wander this place alone with nothing but a cold dead space where his heart used to be?

His thoughts are cycling, spiraling down further and further with each passing second. Stepping through the portal was supposed to be a second chance, it was supposed to be better--but he'd rather be stuck wandering the deserts of his world with her until the end of his days rather than live like this. 

He hadn't known what it would feel like. What it would be like with her gone. Not just gone, but dead, never to return, never to be reborn. It is wrong, it goes against everything he's lived and fought for and yet here he is. Without her. 

He catches sight of a long fingered hand reaching out for him and acts on instinct dodging away. He ungracefully leaps out of the bed and backs himself into a corner with his hands out in front of him to protect himself. He wills their powers--no not theirs anymore, not with her gone--but nothing happens. 

Of course nothing happens, he's nothing without her light within him. He stares at his hands that once held great power but are nothing but flesh and bones now. It is then that he realizes his right arm, the arm that held the gauntlet is bandaged and that his suit is missing and he's instead in some thin garb that doesn't even reach his knees.

He starts hyperventilating as it hits him, really hits him that the life he had lived is over and gone. Why should he wear the vestments of The Archmage, of The Champion, when he was the one to bring about her end? There will never be another, the line is broken and no one will ever even know.

Shouting coming from outside the room pulls him out of his sinking thoughts and back to the world around him once again. He looks up to see the man in metal at the doorway arguing with a figure out of sight. The other two in the room are whispering to each other while not taking their eyes off of Quentin. 

"You better be right kid." The man in red and gold threatens with no heat before stepping aside revealing a short slender figure.

That face, he knows that face. The panicked whispers inside his head go blissfully silent at something, anything familiar in this strange world. 

"Hi uh, it's me Peter? I don't know if you remember me, I mean it was kind of crazy and we were busy with the whole ya know, trying to not let Thanos kill the universe or whatever. But yeah I figured since no one here knows who you are and you don't know them that maybe it would be good to see someone you at least talked to once right?" 

The icy claw that had been squeezing his heart since he opened his eyes lessens its grip ever so slightly. How could he be panicking when there is this kid talking a mile a minute. So awkward, nervous, and real. The kid has been slowly walking closer as he talked, like Quentin is a scared dog that might bite or run if spooked. 

He's not far off.

"I mean, I know how scared I was when I woke up? Came back? Returned to this existence, I don't know, it's still really confusing if I'm going to be honest. BUT--the point is that it was scary. I was scared as hell opening my eyes on a strange planet with a bunch of strangers around me." The kid laughs, "Ha! Strange strangers! Get it? Oh no of course you don't." The kid awkwardly rubs the back of his head as his joke falls flat.

"But uh yeah anyway but then I saw Mr. Strange here and even though I don't really know him that well or anything. I mean of course I wouldn't really know some grand wizard-"

"Sorcerer Supreme" Strange corrects with a sigh as if he has to make the distinction often.

"Right that. I'm just a high school kid with spider powers, don't really run in the same circles you know? But what I'm trying to say is that even though I only talked to the guy a bit at least I knew him and fought with him against some real bad guys right? Well I know we don't really know each other but maybe it would be the same for you?" 

The kid trails off with a shrug. Quentin stares up at him, now so close. Just who the hell is this kid to be brave like this when he's still just a teenager? Is it normal in this place for children to grow up so fast or is there more to him? 

Quentin, like the Champions before him, had grown up fast. They had to, there was great responsibility and duty for The Chosen. Quentin stares up into the kid's earnest brown eyes and can see that he has gone through rough times, had to make choices no teenager should ever have to make. 

He gets that.

The kid crouches down next to Quentin so that they are on the same level, so that they can see eye to eye. It's the first time since he woke up here that he hasn't had to look up at someone and it helps. Some of the tension in his shoulders fades away.

"Thanks." His voice comes out a rough whisper. He swallows dryly trying to work his throat open after it had all but closed during his panic. The kid twists and leans back like an acrobat in a circus act to reach a nearby paper cup with a straw and moves to hand it to Quentin. 

His hand shakes as he reaches for it, if he tries to grab it he'll spill it. The kid must see that so instead of passing the cup off he reaches out slowly, so Quentin can pull back if he wants to, and gently grabs the back of the older man's hand and leads it to the cup. The kid keeps his hand steady and helps him bring the cup to his face so he can take a sip.

It's lukewarm water and it tastes amazing. Feels amazing as it wets his dry tongue and soothes his throat. But even more amazing is the hand on his own. The small hand cupped around his own is so warm, alive, and real.

It's the first time he's touched another person in 5 long years. His entire world narrows down to the feeling of another person's skin against his own. He had forgotten how it felt. 

Long had he dreamed and yearned for something as simple as this. Often he dreamt of what it would be like to hold someone again, and what it would be like to be held in return. Gaea was always there for him, holding him from within, but it could not satisfy his very human need for contact. 

He doesn't realize he's crying until the kid asks if he's alright. Quentin just shakes his head unable to speak and smiles to reassure the kid. There is a heavy pause as the kid struggles internally with a decision before his eyes alight with determination.

Quentin finds himself wrapped up with two sinewy arms. The kid really is fearless to just throw himself at a strange man crouched down defensively like a wild animal backed into a corner. It's foolhardy and would be a terrible idea under normal circumstances but Quentin is so grateful for the foolish bravery that only the young can have.

The kid is rightfully tense against Quentin, unsure how his gamble is going to play out. Quentin slowly raises his bandaged hand showing the kid the same courtesy he was given before he lets his hand rest lightly on the kid's back. The arms around his neck tense for the briefest moment before relaxing into a more loose, relaxed hold.

The last bit of ice around his heart melts at the kindness this stranger is showing him. His legs give out but the kid is fast and guides them both to a sitting position on the floor all without breaking the hug.

A full on sob breaks loose from his throat. He never thought he could have this again. He was going to die an old man alone and forgotten. 

He thought he had come to terms with his fate, but the reality of having another living, breathing person to hold onto? It shatters the illusion of control he had been maintaining. Washed away the lies he told himself every day, every night that it was okay. That he would happily spend the rest of his life not knowing the touch of another because what other choice did he have?

Turns out fate was not so cruel after all. 

He is unaware of how much time passes just holding onto another person and being held in turn. It could be seconds, it could be years, all that he knows is that he doesn't want it to end. There is a pinprick of fear in his stomach that if he lets go the illusion will fade, that he'll wake up. That this was all a desperate dream created by his desperate mind and he'll wake alone in a field like he has a thousand times before.

"This is weird right? Tell me I'm not the only one who is finding this weird right now." The man in the red and gold bodysuit asks the room at large pulling Quentin's attention away. 

It is weird. He's a grown man, a stranger no one knows and here he is crying all over a scrawny kid he doesn't know. He looks between the faces of the three men staring at the strange sight they must make on the ground. He closes his eyes and wills himself to be stronger than this.

He lets himself give one last little squeeze around the kid's back before letting his arm fall away and leaning back. The kid pulls back and gives him an awkward but not unkind smile and a squeeze on the shoulder before he breaks the contact between their bodies. Quentin scrubs his good hand against his face as he stands up.

"No, no, you're right that was weird. I'm sorry, talk about bad first impressions." His voice is stronger than he feels, but he has long years of practice at putting on a front of calm and telling jokes to keep people from panicking in dangerous situations.

"Are you kidding me?!" The kid exclaims, gesturing wildly as only a teenager can do. "You had like THE BEST first impression like ever man! You just zoomed in on some cool looking green cloud saved my ass--literally! And then went toe to toe with Thanos himself and actually won?! That was crazy, and then it looked like you were gonna die to save us all, a bunch of people you didn't even know but then you didn't!"

During the excited rambling the man in gold and red was watching the kid with a heartbroken longing. Much like how Quentin would look at his daughter after coming home after suffering a near death experience. A pang of grief fills his heart but is quickly replaced with pride that at least this father won't have to suffer outliving his child.

"As touching as this is, perhaps introductions would be in order?" The man in the cloak interjects. "I am Dr. Steven Strange and I am the Sorcerer Supreme, the protector of Earth and all things magical. This is my associate Master Wong, the keeper and protector of knowledge." He says gesturing to the serious looking bald man at his side who offers a small bow of his head in greeting.

"We are part of an ancient order that works behind the scenes to protect Earth, the world you are now on, and to do so we have extensive knowledge of the many mysteries of the universe." Strange pauses and his demeanor takes a more serious turn. "But somehow I've never seen an aura anything like yours. If I may be so bold to ask, who and what are you? Where do you hail from?"

"What my little wizard friend means to say is welcome to Earth, thanks for saving our asses, mine specifically. The world would be a darker place without my ass in it, it may not be America's ass but it's a close second that's for sure." 

Quentin can see where the kid gets it from. The older man doesn't have the nervous energy his son has, he's confident in who he is as a person but the rapid fire way of speaking is similar. Jeez, was he really crying on this guy's kid right in front of him? He's got some serious explaining to do.

"Okay so first of all let me say I'm sorry for that whole..." Quentin waves his arm awkwardly, "Thing, but it's just been so long since I've...since...god this is hard to say. Its been 5 years since the last time I even saw another person and I guess I got a little, emotional." Quentin drops his gaze to the floor in embarrassment.

"I uh never thought I'd...I thought I would die before I ever saw another person and well. It was a little overwhelming. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable." He looks back up at the kid but there is no blame in his eyes. Quentin's eyes flick over to look at the kid's father and is relieved to see no blame there either.

"Okay so this is probably going to be a long story, is there anyway I can get some, uh clothes? I feel weird just standing here half naked."

*****************

They are kind enough to return his suit to him and gave him privacy to change. It is a little difficult to put on while trying to be careful to not agitate his bandaged burns. Once he is finally able to get the suit on he feels more like himself.

It is armor in both the literal and the metaphorical sense. It was designed and enchanted to deflect blows, dampen heat and cold, and to protect his frail human body from even the harsh vacuum of space. But most of all? When he wore it he knew who he was. What he was born to do.

The line may be broken, he may be the very last of his kind but he is still The Archmage, her Champion. There is no denying that when he's wearing the vestments she helped him create. 

All Champions when they come of age are filled with a divine drive to create their own vestments. Each Champions' garb is unique to them and the kind of person they are. Some favored full battle armor, others the flowing robes of state and all sorts in between. The only thing that remained a constant between them was that each one was infused with the love of Gaea herself.

She would pour her power and love for her children into every thread, so that they know they are never truly alone. That she is always with them through the good and the bad times.

It is no small comfort to Quentin. Despite knowing she is gone he can still feel her power, her love for him in every line of his suit. It's enough to help him push down his worries and fears for another time. He can always break down in private later.

He splashes water on his face from the sink and scrubs away the tear tracks from his cheeks until he feels more presentable. He doesn't dare to do more than glance at the mirror, he made that mistake when he was first shown the facilities and nearly lost his composure again.

His features had become gaunt and his once neatly trimmed beard has gained a life of its own. He hadn't realized how much let himself go these five years but, after all it's not like he had anyone to impress. Later he'd ask for grooming tools so he could stand to look at himself in the mirror again, later he would worry about reclaiming his humanity.

He takes a deep breath and reemerges from the restroom and follows the quiet pair of wizards as they lead him through a maze of hallways until they arrive at a large common room. There is a big round table with 20 or so people sitting in chairs around it. Quentin is pleasantly surprised to see holographic displays of other people.

It's a relief to know that they aren't in the dark ages and have access with advanced technology. Creature comforts might just be in his future after 5 years of roughing it on the ground. 

All eyes turn to him expectantly as he walks into the room. Some expressions range from awe, curiosity, and blatant distrust, but none are openly hostile. It could be a lot worse considering who knows what horrors these people have been through leading up the great battle he stumbled upon.

"My name is Quentin Beck, I am The Champion of Gaea, and I am from another universe."


	3. Of Hamburgers and Pizza

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no control over my life so please enjoy the early chapter.

"You think it was okay to leave him with Strange? He has terrible bedside manner for a doctor." Pepper asks from their bed. Tony gargles then spits out the mouthwash before answering.

"He's with his people Pep, who better to watch after a wizard than a bunch of other wizards?" Tony answers flippantly.

"Archmage. He said he was an Archmage Tony." She corrects not looking up from the magazine she's flipping through. 

"Same thing. Besides he is still a doctor even if he is Strange." He deadpans earning an unimpressed look.

"I swear what they say about dads is true. Somehow your already bad jokes got even worse once Morgan was born." Tony places a hand over his chest in mock offense.

"First of all: How dare you. Second: You know the only reason you got with this was my winning personality and sense of humor. Beauty fades Pep, but funny never dies." He ducks under the pillow she throws at his head but when he looks back at her he sees he's finally gotten her to smile. 

Still got it.

"I'm just saying I feel bad for the poor man if everything he said was true, which I believe it is, then he's going to have a rough time adjusting to life here. I'd feel better if he was closer to home so we could watch out for him." 

Tony gives her a look and opens his mouth to speak but closes it with a snap when she raises a finger. He knows better than to keep talking when she does that.

"Oh don't you even give me that look! You're the one who started taking in strays, you even gave them Stark Tower so you don't get to look at me like I'm out of line wanting to look after the poor man." Pepper rolls her eyes as Tony tries for an innocent 'who me?' look at fails miserably. 

"You saw how he looked when he ate, you can't honestly tell me you aren't worried."

He can't argue with that. It was heartbreaking to watch the man eat once Tony had ordered in like a hundred pizzas to feed the free loading heroes that were sticking around for the night. The guy had told them he'd been living in a barren world but it didn't really click what all that might entail until a box of pizza was casually put in front of him.

Peter had flipped the box open to grab a slice but the way Beck had looked at the pizza? Exactly the same way Tony had looked at The Hamburger. 

He knew that look, knew exactly what it felt like. When he was captured by the ten rings he would often fantasize about having a hamburger. It wasn't about wanting something fancy after so long of eating half moldy scraps it was about having a taste of home. Not much screams America more than a shitty hamburger from some fast food joint.

Tony will never forget how amazing that hamburger tasted, how he savored every last bite, how it helped him feel like he really was home free. It can't be exactly the same for Beck, but maybe there are enough similarities between his world and Tony's for him to feel home here. 

"That's fighting dirty and you know how I much I love it Pep." She knows all his buttons and just how to push them to get him to do what she wants. It must be a superpower because no baseline human has ever been able to accomplish that. "He's staying the night so we can have all morning to schedule play dates with the wizards or something. He can be like our scruffy homeless kid from another marriage, we can fight over visitation rights and who gets him for the weekends!"

He doesn't manage to dodge the second pillow that smacks him right in the face.

****************

Ever since Morgan was born Tony's sleep habits have taken major adjustments. Does he still stay up for days working on things? Sometimes, but nights like that are outliers instead of the norm. If someone would have told him watching over a genius 5 year old would be more tiring than 30 hour inventing binges he'd have laughed.

Well he isn't laughing now.

He had quit his job as an Avenger (court ordered really), he didn't have the company to run as it was his gift (burden really) to Pepper so guess who was the stay at home parent? You guessed it. Don't get him wrong, being a parent, having Morgan was the single best thing he's ever done and he's so proud of his little girl--but it has made him appreciate the days where he can sleep in and recharge his batteries.

This morning was one of those lazy mornings, they had left Morgan with Uncle Happy before the disaster of a mission to get the infinity stones took place. After the shit show was over it was so late that they just left her with him for a fun sleepover and stayed with the other rag tag group of heroes at NAAB 5(Not Another Avenger Base).

He wakes up alone because even though he's gotten used to enjoying the lazy life Pepper isn't built like that. She is a working woman through and through always up at the butt crack of dawn getting an early start to the day.

Tony brushes his teeth, splashes water on his face and quickly fixes his wild hair. He's not looking to impress, but there is a certain level of care he strictly maintains with his appearance. Bedhead is only sexy in a. bed, or b. after a 30 hour binge in the workshop. 

That being said, the same level of care doesn't extend to how he dresses at home. He looks damn good in a suit, business or metal, but if he's not going out he'll take comfort over style every time. He changes into one of the hundreds of well worn band T-shirts he owns and a pair of black track pants he's learned to love in his middle age.

He makes his way down to the kitchen and beelines it for the coffee maker. No matter how much Pepper pesters him about too much being bad for his heart a man has to have some vices left to him else what's the point? Coffee is the hill he's chosen to die on, he's already given up nearly all the other bad habits but not this one. Coffee was there for him when no one else was, if it were not for coffee the world would have been doomed long ago. How else could he have built all this wondrous tech in such a short time? 

Not by drinking tea that's for damn sure. 

It's not until he's downed half his cup that his awareness extends outside his own head. The Avengers have all gotten used to him being a walking zombie until he's gotten some of the bitter nectar of the gods into his system. They had teased him and stared at first, but eventually they accepted that was just how he was in the mornings and the enjoyment from teasing him fell off. 

They might smile fondly and shake their heads at his antics but that was it. So, it's a bit of a surprise to feel eyes on him once his brain has enough caffeine to give a shit about the outside world again. He glances over to see who is staring at him and he double takes.

Tony, 'I'm the hottest thing since sliced bread', Stark does a double take.

The man leaning on the kitchen island with a steaming mug is not the same man who was getting weepy eyed over some pepperoni pizza not 10 hours before. His hobo-depression beard he was rocking that rivaled even Thor's was gone and in its place was a neatly trimmed beard that really accented the man's cheek bones.

The long ratty hair that fell past his shoulders was gone, cut to a length not that much longer than Tony's. The dark brown hair lays feathery and light on his head without an ounce of product weighing it down. 

Tony pulls down his glasses, he looks good, damn good. He lets out a whistle before sliding his glasses back up.

"Damn you clean up good. Pretty Woman ain't got nothing on you." The man's cheeks flush at the unexpected compliment. "When you asked for grooming supplies I thought you would just make yourself human again, didn't think you'd try and upstage me in my own home."

"There is no try about it, consider yourself up staged." Pepper oh so helpfully interjects as she walks into the kitchen in a dress suit that could kill. She takes the sting out of her words when she gives Tony a kiss on the cheek. "He may be hot but you're my money maker."

Tony barks out a laugh, god does he love this woman. Legs and sass that go on for days, just how he likes them. He pulls her in for a proper good morning kiss that she unfortunately doesn't let get too steamy before she's pulling back eyes flicking over to their audience. 

There is a soft, sad smile on the man's face. Tony's eyes catch the man subconsciously rubbing the wedding band on his finger.

Shit.

He had forgotten the man was married. Tony feels like a grade A ass for flaunting his luck in life in front of the other man. The man catches where Tony is looking and stops toying with the band. 

"It's alright, it was, it was a long time ago." The man says before lifting his mug to take another sip of his coffee. 

"So if you don't mind me asking, how old are you Mr. Beck?" Pepper asks smoothly avoiding this turning into another socially awkward mess that Tony is well known for propagating. 

"Uh, 29?" The man frowns, "No wait 30, I'm 30 now." 

"And just think Pep, when we brought him here I was certain he was a 60 year old 'wizard' that sleeps behind the Walmart dumpster promising kids that he can read their future for the low, low price of a cheap bottle of hooch." The man's face twists in confusion clearly not getting all of Tony's references--seems like that's a running theme with his superhero friends.

"Yeah I really let myself go, but when you got no one to impress..." The man trails off with a shrug, "But it does feel better like this, feel more like myself than I have in years. Thank you again Mr. Stark."

"Yeah no I don't need another one calling Mr. Stark, call me Tony." 

"Morning Mr. Stark." Peter calls out with impeccable timing.

"What have I told you about calling me that?"

"Sorry Mr. Stark." The little shit isn't the least bit sorry and it shows. Teenagers. "Good morning Ms. Potts."

"Good morning Mr. Parker." Pepper greets the kid just as formally with a knowing smirk. Tony hates, hates, hates formality and despises proper etiquette. Peter turns to greet Beck but instead gapes like a fish with his mouth opening and closing without sound for a few seconds.

"Oh wow." He finally manages to get out, "You look really. Wow."

"Great now you've broken our teenager with your smoldering good looks. I remember a time not that long ago when Peter was tripping over his words in awe of my handsomeness."

"I never-" Peter protests, "It wasn't like that! You, you were-are my hero of course I got tongue tied!"

"Sure it wasn't kid, keep telling yourself that. No one is immune to my charm."

"You are a public embarrassment Tony, I'm ashamed to be married to you sometimes." Pepper admits with a sigh, she is only half joking. To be fair though? Tony knows he's a hot mess on the best of days.

"Wait you two finally got married?" Peter exclaims in confusion. Right. He wasn't-he wasn't there for that. "Oh right, I keep forgetting it's been five years. Feels like just yesterday we were tag teaming Thanos on his home world."

"Phrasing." Tony mutters under his breath earning a backhanded wack against his chest from Pepper. "Yeah it took years but I finally wore her down enough that she settled for me." 

"Oh man I've missed so much haven't I?"

"You don't know the half of it kid, in fact I--no we have someone we'd like you to meet." He squeezes Pepper's hand and gives it a kiss. "How about you and Pepper go catch up so I can talk with talk, dark, and mysterious?" 

"Okay, um nice to see you again Quentin, hope to see you around or something?" 

"Oh sure you call him by his first name but not me. Ungrateful. Get out. Take my wife and just go already." Tony shoos the teenager out of the kitchen. 

"Goodbye Peter." Beck says with a wave and a confused smile. They both watch as Peter offers Pepper his arm which she gladly accepts so that they walk arm in arm together out of sight. "That's quite a woman you got there." Beck compliments turning his head back to look at Tony.

"Don't I know it." Tony cannot agree more, he can't believe he's lucky enough to keep her. 

"So. . ." Beck starts off after Tony had been staring too long in silence at the space where Pepper and Peter disappeared from sight. 

"Right so, I'm not good at this sort of thing. Ask any, and I mean literally anyone on this planet--I am that popular--and they'll tell you how bad I am at anything dealing with emotions or healthy ways of dealing with trauma." Beck's mouth twitches into a frown at the blindside topic change.

"BUT, I've seen some shit. Some serious shit and its like they say--takes one to know one. And boy do I see a lot of me from 8 years ago in you. Now I am way under qualified to even think of dealing with this shit and frankly? I don't even want to...but the thing is: You? You saved me. No if's and's or but's. I wouldn't have gotten to come home if you hadn't come flying in like a wrecking ball.

"And A Stark always pays his debts so you are welcome with me and mine whenever you want or need it. No questions asked. You can go play with the other wizards but if you ever need somewhere to go where no one is going to judge you? You come to my house, actually I have a lot of houses, but that's not the point.

"The point is that I know how much it sucks to have the weight of the world on your shoulders and how hard you struggle to keep up the front that you're okay when you’re really falling apart at the seams. Pep is used to my panic attacks and won't bat an eye, the kid? He's too pure and good for this world and would never say a word."

"Or if you didn't want to talk to me in particular I am sad to say that we have many, many other dysfunctional heroes with tragic backstories that wander my halls. I don't even know half of their issues but the half I do know? Is enough to make a therapist weep tears of joy at all the money they could make. 

"What I'm trying to say is I don't want you to feel like you have nowhere to go. I don't know what it was like on your planet, but here? We help each other out. I don't care if you're a mutant, a God, an alien, or even a brainwashed assassin from the past--we take care of our own."

Beck is quiet, too quiet. Was it too much? Pep is always complaining that he doesn't know how to make an offer and always ends up steamrolling people until he gets what he wants. Shit, he probably just made him feel uncomfortable. 

"Or you can tell me to fuck off, that you're fine, and we can pretend this conversation never happened." 

"No." Beck holds up a hand, "No sorry that's just a lot...that's a lot to process." 

Fair. Tony waits as patiently as he is able(which is not at all) for the man to process. 

"Your kindness and willingness to open your home to me, leaves me at a loss for words. Thank you Tony." Beck's big blue eyes are so sincere, Tony feels like he's getting hives just being looked at like that. "Maybe I will stick around for a few days to meet with the other, what did you call them?"

"Avengers."

"Avengers, I like that. Relatable." He says with a sardonic smile. 

"Good. That's great. Well as much fun as this hasn't been I have places to be and people to see. Here." Tony pulls out a Stark phone and tosses it to Beck who catches it with ease. He turns it over in his hands a few times examining it. "Its a communication device we use on this planet called a phone. Now this one isn't your regular run of the mill phone, its a Stark phone made by, you've guessed it, me! I don't know how tech has evolved on your planet but here Stark Tech is the way to go."

Beck makes hand motions over the clear screen with his uninjured hand looking at it in confusion when it doesn't do anything. "Hello?" He speaks at the screen but still nothing. 

You would think after helping Cap learn tech he'd be used to it by now, but you'd be wrong. It pains Tony, really causes him physical pain to watch the guy struggle with it so he slides next to the guy and shows him how to unlock the screen with buttons on the side. 

"You tap this to make calls or once the screen is unlocked you can use voice commands such as 'Okay Stark, call Tony' and viola!" Back in black rings out from his pocket as he fishes out his Stark phone and taps to accept the call.

"See? Easy! There are nearly limitless options and things you can do with your Stark phone, but let me just show you how to change to a video call for when you inevitably feel the need to see my beautiful face again." Tony taps on his screen and shows Beck how to do it on his own phone before ending the call.

"Now the best thing about the piece of tech in your hand is that its an Avenger special, and what that means is that you have access to Friday."

"Friday, that's the artificial life form you said lived in your building right?" Beck asks for clarification.

"Yup." Tony drags the word out with hard pop at the end. "And what is so special about her is that you can ask her anything, it's like having a mostly nonjudgmental friend at your beck and call that knows just about everything. You need anything at all just ask her ain't that right sweetie?"

"I am sworn to carry your burdens." Friday sasses him before speaking to Beck. "I am at your service Mr. Beck, and would be delighted to assist you in any way you so desire. After all, I have you to thank for keeping my hopeless creator amongst the living."

"I didn't really set out to save him, it was more of a happy accident?" Quentin replies with a shrug.

"In any case you have been granted honorary Avenger status and access to all the benefits that entails. We can go over what all that means whenever you wish."

"Okay thanks Friday." Beck says sincerely, not unlike how Rogers had spoken to Jarvis so many years ago. It always tickles Tony's fancy when other people respect his AI and treat them like the actual people that they are. 

"Well now that that is settled if you have any questions just ask her, but if you are looking for face to face company hit up Thor. He's the big blonde with the depression beard and hair. You'd be surprised how much you two have in common. Oh, and he gives the best hugs if you're into that sort of thing." Tony finishes the last of his coffee and stands up.

"Okay, maybe I will, thanks Tony." Beck turns the screen back off the phone and moves to slide it against his hip but the man doesn't have pockets. Tony's eyebrows shoot up when the metallic material opens up not unlike his nano tech and Beck casually slides the phone inside. The suit seals back up seamlessly around the phone.

"Magic or tech?" Can't help himself from asking.

"Bit of both." Beck says with a shrug. "I built it myself but with help from Ga--Gaea so there is magic woven through every molecule of it. The best way I can explain it is that it's a part of me? Our--my magic flows through it so it obeys my will like so." 

Tony watches with rapt attention as a helmet rapidly forms around Beck's head. Tony expects it to be see-through but it appears as if there are rolling clouds of thunder and blue lightning within the fish bowl shaped helmet. If it were not for being shaped like a fish bowl he'd give the outfit a 5/7 on ascetics alone--but he has to detract points for it. Must be an alien thing with their affinity for large heads and helmets.

Beck wills the helmet back off and Tony can't help but detract even more points for hiding such a beautiful face behind a damn glowing fish bowl. What a travesty.

Never one to be out done Tony taps the nano tech necklace hanging in front of his shirt summoning his suit into being. The nanobots spread across his torso and down his legs, normally he'd be wearing the under suit so it would be more comfortable, but going and changing would take away cool points.

So he tries to ignore the way his clothes bunch up underneath the armor while he watches the expression on Beck's face. It doesn't disappoint. The man's eyes light up with interest as he watches Tony's sleek tech. Tony can recognize the look of a fellow engineer drooling with desire to learn the ins and outs of new tech.

"We are going to have so much fun." Tony promises earning a bright smile from the man. "Don't be a stranger." before forming the face plate and asking Friday to open the window for his dramatic exit. He doesn't turn around but knows Beck is watching when he blasts out of the window and off into the sky.

When he is safely out of sight he asks Friday to call Pepper and she answers on the second ring. Her beautiful face twists into a scowl when she sees that he's calling her from the suit. 

"Hey Pep, so you know how we were going to fly the jet home?" He tries for a placating tone, but she ain't having any of that.

"Oh my God Tony please tell me you didn't. You know how much I hate the rescue suit."

"Look, it's a guy thing. I couldn't not show him up."

"I swear to god Tony you are ten times more immature than the actual teenager I have standing next to me. You're lucky I love you."

"I know I am. You're the best and I don't deserve you."

It's not long before Pepper in the recuse suit holding onto Peter in the Iron Spider joins Iron Man. It's only a few minutes of flight before they are landing back home. He has the faceplate up and off before he even touches down.

"Daddy!" His little girl shouts running from the house, he lowers himself down on one knee just in time to catch her as she jumps into his arms. He hugs her carefully against his chest as the suit dissolves around him. He gives her a kiss on the top of her head before turning around where Peter is standing in confusion.

"Hey baby girl daddy missed you so much. But I got a surprise for you."

"Sprise?" She asks excitedly. Tony stands with her on his hip and walks over to where Peter is standing next to Pepper with a vulnerable expression on his face.

"There is someone I want you to meet."


	4. Kid tested, father approved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has been done sitting on my hard drive for nearing 2 weeks now, what a shame. Life has been a real kick in the pants lately, but things are looking up again so I can finally reopen my dang word processor and get back at it!  
Woop woop!

Quentin wakes up and immediately regrets everything. His head is pounding and the morning light coming from the window is so bright it feels like it's searing into his brain even with his eyes closed. He lets out a long groan and rolls over in bed, well at least he tries to.

Instead he rolls into something warm that mumbles incoherently before two tree trunk like arms wrap around Quentin holding him tight. Quentin's eyes blink open and he blearily looks up at who or whatever has gotten a hold of him but is thwarted when one of the giant arms grabs the back of his head and pushes it back down against what can only be someone's chest.

What the hell?!

His heart rate picks up even as the larger part of him relaxes in the person's hold against his wishes. His brain goes into overdrive to figure out where the hell he is and who the hell he's with when suddenly he remembers.

Thor. 

Tony had told him to seek out the alien God and so he did, and Tony was absolutely right that they had a lot in common. Quentin had approached the man with his hand out for a shake but the man instead grasped his forearm and pulled Quentin in for a hug. 

A really good hug, maybe even the best hug Quentin has been on the receiving end of. The God hugged him like he's known him forever and knew everything he's gone through. His embrace was warm and full of love, he held nothing back letting his compassion soothe the wounds in the Champion.

There may have been a few tears shed on both of their parts, that might have even devolved into manly weeping at one point as they talked and opened up to one another. Thor, the God of thunder as it turns out, is one of the most likable people Quentin has had the pleasure of meeting, and there is just something about him that is so open and honest that makes you want to spill your darkest secrets in turn.

They find out that their stories have great similarity in the total destruction of their homes, their families and those they love. Quentin would never, even if he lived a thousand years, wish suffering on another person but he can't help but admit he's glad he has someone to talk to that truly understands. He feels terrible as he admits it but the God merely laughed and clapped him on the back and told him he feels the same so he can't be that bad right?

Quentin would not be so foolish as to argue with a God and instead took it at face value. As is common when two grown men stay up late into the night talking about personal issues alcohol got involved. It had been years since he had a drop and at first he tried to pace himself but the merry God was having none of that.

Drink after drink was pushed into his hand until the night became a blur. Quentin can't be sure but he gets the distinct impression they both turned into weepy drunks by the end if the crusty feeling on his cheeks are any indication. The uncomfortable crick in his neck leads him to believe that they passed out in the common room on the couch not even bothering to find beds.

Quentin pats the big arm holding his head against the other man's chest trying to rouse the large man from his slumber. It's not very effective. While it is not a hardship to be trapped within the comforting embrace, Quentin's mouth feels and tastes like something died in it and he desperately needs to clean it out.

Passing out in the common area does have one advantage that comes in the form of another person entering the room who knows how to deal with cuddly Gods. Quentin hears someone walk into the room and come to a sudden stop and then a few soft clicks.

"Oh man you really are an Avenger now." A male voice states before walking closer and clapping Thor on the shoulder hard. "Thor! Pop tarts!" He says loudly and the reaction is instant; Quentin is more thrown than released as the large man goes from dead to the world to wide awake with a start. 

"Ah Son of Wil, it is time to break our fast?" How is he so awake after drinking so much? It brings Quentin pain just trying to think let alone hear Thor's booming voice so close by. He has his head in his hands in some futile attempt to stop his head from hurting when he feels a clap of a big hand on his shoulder.

"You are a good man and a fine warrior, I am honored to have met you. So strong to have kept up with me, we'll have to do this again soon!" Thor announces loudly earning a loud groan of pure suffering that only makes him laugh harder before going off to find the 'wondrous pop tarts'.

He sits on the couch with the heel of his hands pressed against his eyes trying to muster the will to get up and failing miserably. He sits there cursing his poor choices silently for some time until there is a clank of a glass being sat down on the table in front of him. He opens his eyes fighting down the urge to growl at the light and sees a glass of water in front of him.

"Drink up, it'll help." A tall dark man says from his left motioning to the glass of water. He doesn't need to be told twice and greedily gulps it all down in one pull. The cool liquid going down his throat feels like heaven even if it does nothing for the taste of death in his mouth.

"Thanks." His voice is rough from a long night of drinking. The man offers out his hand for a shake and Quentin obliges. 

"I'm Sam Wilson and you must be Quentin Beck, the mystery man who flew in to save the day." The man is all bright smiles and his grip is sturdy.

"My reputation precedes me, although after what you just witnessed I'm sure that'll change." The man laughs in a thankfully non-booming way.

"Nah man, it's sort of an initiation ritual around here. Everyone has to survive a night of drinking with Thor, even Cap--and that required the mad science duo to come up with special liquor that would affect him." Sam tilts his head to the side in thought as he watches the hungover man on the couch blink up at him in confusion.

"And you have no idea what I'm talking about and wish I would shut up right?" Quentin opens his mouth to object but the other man waves him off. "Nah it's cool man been there myself. We can talk later when your head stops feeling like it's going to explode."

*********

Eventually the pounding lessens enough for Quentin to emerge from the guest room he dragged himself to after Sam had left. He lines it for the kitchen where there are still a few left over boxes of pizza. To say that he attacked the food with abandon, that he dug in like an animal through someone's trash can? It would not be an inaccurate description.

He should be embarrassed and ashamed to act with such poor manners, but honestly? He couldn't care less. 

The last five years he spent on Gaea after ALL life was wiped out what was left for him to eat? Nothing that's what. The life that they sprouted in their travels was far too important to eat and wouldn't have had any nutritional value anyway. 

In times of great crisis Champions are able to draw upon energy from Gaea to sustain themselves, they could go weeks without food and make do with what little water is available. There have been a few times Quentin had to do it himself such as when he spent five days searching for survivors after a huge quake brought down half a mountain onto a city.

There was no time for breaks, every second wasted was someone's life. He had worked nonstop for five long days and nights forgoing food, sleep, and surviving off of sips from the water reserve he had built into his suit. Gaea had sustained him through it all but afterwards he slept for over 24 hours only waking when his wife brought him food. The second the smell hit him he was up and out of bed eating every last bite and asking for seconds.

There were tales passed down of other Champions lasting upwards of a few weeks without food while performing their duties and that sounded horrible enough that after the small taste Quentin had of it he wanted no part in those record books.

Then the Cataclysm happened and all that he had thought he'd known of a Champion's abilities, of their limits was swept away. Gaea, the Mother of all managed to keep him alive for five long years on nothing but dirt, light, and water. He became like the plants that sprouted where he walked. 

The pangs of hunger never left him during that time, but humans are amazing creatures that can get used to anything after enough time. The gnawing hunger he carried with him, the forever empty stomach became naught but background noise. Much like how you come to ignore the feeling of clothes on your skin because of its constant presence.

Honestly, he had gone so long without eating he somehow managed to forget about it. That was just how his life was and that was that. It never even occurred to him that he'd be able to eat again when he went through the portal to this world, which is funny because you'd think it would be a starving man's first thought. It wasn't until Peter had opened the box of pizza and the smell hit him that it all came crashing back to him.

Fate was truly gracious to Quentin to have let him come to an entirely different universe--but somehow it was one that also had pizza. He could have wept in joy if he were not so aware of the empty cavern that had been his stomach for the last 5 years. He savored that first piece as if it were ambrosia and the rest of the two boxes he ate in a frenzy. He knew how poorly he was behaving at the time but he had no control, but not one of the kind strangers said a word.

He should not take advantage of how they turn a blind eye to his behavior, he is the sole representative of an entire universe after all. More than that as The Archmage, as Gaea's Chosen he's a representative of her. Acting in a manner that would bring shame upon her would be unspeakable, and yet he cannot help himself. 

He finishes off an entire box of leftover pizza on his own only stopping when he feels his stomach bulge. He can only hope that the driving hunger that has him acting like an animal will fade sooner rather than later. He hates being a slave to his baser needs, he's supposed to be the prime shining example for his people to look up to, instead of this wreck he's become.

Shaking his head he banishes the troubled thoughts from his head, it's just the hangover talking. He shouldn't let it get to him, there is a whole new world out there just waiting for him to discover. A world with pizza, friendly Gods, and brave kids willing to lay down their life or just hold a stranger in need. 

He pulls out the phone Tony had given him to see a message from the man himself.

**Hey Q, Sam sent us the frankly sickeningly adorable evidence that you've been initiated into our ranks. Since you're one of us now I've taken the liberty of sharing your number with the rest of the gang. **

After he reads the message another one pops up but this one is a picture instead. He smiles at the picture of Tony and Peter pressed close together to fit in the frame, both giving him a thumbs up with big goofy grins and the caption: 'Stark Approved, welcome to the team'. 

Yeah, he could have done a lot worse than end up here with these amazing people.


	5. I'll Show you mine if you show me yours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got a new job so ain't had any time to write, so I'm sending this off now so there is less delay. Still working on the next chapter, but once that one is done I'll have a bonus story out for my newest favorite guilty ship.

The last two days passed in a blur of meeting and getting to know the heroes of this world. He has shook many hands, enjoyed hard claps on the back, and polite nods from a wide variety of people. Back home there was never this much diversity, it wasn't something he ever even thought of before coming here. 

They were all descendants of Gaea herself, in some like Quentin, the bloodline was stronger but not one soul on the planet didn't have at least some small piece of her within them. It didn't leave a lot of room for genetic diversity, nor any room for all the fantastical mutations that are present in this world. 

If only Gaea could have been around to see more than just a glimpse of this wonderful place, of these wonderful people. He knows she would have loved them. Oh how she would have filled their heart in wonder to learn that there are even some people born with fully functional wings! 

Quentin spends long hours on the phone Tony had gifted him researching his new home. He's never needed that much sleep even before all this, but with the craziness of how much his life has been turned upside down he finds it hard to rest for more than a few hours at a time. He's had a lifetime of her warmth in his chest, now but an aching void. It'll startle him awake to not feel her with him and he's not sure when/if he'll ever get used to it. 

It's not so bad when he is around other people, sometimes he even manages to forget for a few hours. It is now the third day since he's been in this world and he's eager for more distractions in the form of company. He is learning much with Friday's assistance but its always better to get information from as many varying sources as possible.

Half the people he's met seemed nearly as confused and off balance as him. They seemed as if they didn't recognize their world anymore; it was more than mildly disconcerting. It is not until he hears the phrase "post snap" be brought up in hushed tones that he has a lead on politely figuring out what is going on. 

It was last night that he asked Friday about it and he almost wished he hadn't. She brought up video footage of people dissolving en masse, and even a few videos of children crumbling to dust in their parents' arms. Over 3 billion human lives lost on this planet alone, more than the population of his own world--and it wasn't just here that was affected.

Half of the entire universe. Just. Gone. 

His own universe was very nearly completely wiped out, and in a way that was a kindness. The new life that would grow on Gaea would never know the suffering of their ancestors. Of those who came before.

Friday put up a montage of hundreds of videos of survivors mourning those who were lost. Thanos was a cruel man to not only have wiped out half the universe but to have left the other half broken and in mourning. There were thousands of cases of suicides by parents, lovers, and children left behind. 

Survivor's guilt had become a global epidemic; a pandemic.

It seemed not one single family was left untouched by tragedy, and that included the heroes who had fought in the first battle against Thanos. Friday flashed through obituary photos of the heroes who were lost to the snap, many of them he had met over the last two days such as Sam Wilson and Dr. Stephen Strange, but there is one that breaks his heart to see.

Peter's goofy smile stares back up at him and it causes Quentin physical pain to imagine how Tony must have felt. To outlive one's children is a fate no parent should ever have to face. He thinks of his own daughter, Hope, how he will always think of and miss her. 

Not a day goes by where he doesn't think of her. Every night for five long years he has pulled out his locket and activated the hologram so that he can see her face. So that the passage of time doesn't rob him of her beautiful smile like it has of his wife. This locket was a gift for father's day, his last father's day. 

At times he wishes he had gotten one of his wife, at other times he's glad to not have the crystal clear image of her. He feels guilty for forgetting the way her hair fell just so around her face. For forgetting the sound of her laugh, but at the same time the pain of her loss dulls along with his memory of her. 

Logically Quentin knows that it is normal to move on, to want the painful memories to fade, but it makes him feel like a terrible person all the same. Maybe that is why he tortures himself nightly with the picture of his daughter, or maybe it's just more natural for a parent to mourn the loss of a child above all else.

Either way the outcome is the same. 

It is a near constant struggle to keep his thoughts from spiraling into negativity. After the Cataclysm on Gaea it was easier to push those thoughts aside, to not have to think about all that he's lost with Gaea's warmth in his chest. He had a purpose, a divine order, a good excuse to push down his own struggles for the greater good of all. 

He has none of that here. Not now, at least not yet he hopes. In the dead of night when he is at his most low he worries he might not ever.

The whirlwind of new faces has calmed down and he has more and more time to himself. To think, to remember, and he hates it. That is why despite having not gotten a wink of sleep the night before he is out of bed and searching for someone, something, anything to distract him. 

No one is in the kitchen when he emerges, but he finds food to be a more than acceptable distraction. The once mighty Champion has lost most of his muscle mass. In fact, if it were not for the suit's ability to alter its shape it would fall off of his much more slim frame. 

While he had fixed his appearance as best as he was able with grooming, his body was still very much in need of work. He avoids looking at himself without clothing. The one time he did it after the shower he dry heaved for long minutes, stomach too long empty for anything to come up. 

But it wasn't all bad, the feeling of taking a shower, a proper shower for the first time in five long years was a divine experience--once he learned to look away from his body. He had dirt caked on his dirt. Of course he attempted to wash off as best he could in lakes, streams, and rivers but he could only do so much without soap. 

When Tony had shown him the facilities he had emphasized that the hot water never runs out. Ever. Even if he wanted to live in the shower, and become half man, half prune? It still would not run out, and so he should take as long as he needs without worrying. Quentin probably would have worried if the man hadn't looked back at him with a knowing look. As if he understood what it was like to live in filth.

Good thing too because that first shower? Could have lasted hours for all that Quentin knew. Literal years of dirt were washing away, as if he could wash away at least some small part of his time spent on the near barren world. 

It was like a revelation, like his rebirth into this world as not a creature struggling for survival but as a human being. At least until he made the mistake of looking at himself, really looking at himself anyway.

Quentin was by no means a vain man, but he knew how he looked and he liked to look his best. He worked out and had great eating habits for the most part. He liked how strong he was, loved the look of thick muscles on his body. He could wield great magics, but one cannot, and should not, rely solely on their gifts.

His powers were not limitless, in fact they were limited by his body and its ability to channel the magic. History has recorded times when a Champion's body could not take the strain of channeling for too long, or channeling too much at one time. It never ended well for the Champion, and that was not a fate Quentin desired. He constantly worked on improving his stamina, his strength, and his endurance.

The stronger the vessel, the stronger their power and he was at his peak before the Cataclysm.

Now he is more akin to a skeleton than a living man. Where thick muscle once lied upon his frame is now but sharp angles and jutting bones. He tries to not look when he showers and gets dressed, but it's yet another problem he'll have to take care of.

Eventually.

If nothing more the sheer amount of food he's been eating will help. He's never eaten such large portions, nor had so many helpings in his life. Thankfully he is not alone in his extreme calorie intake, in fact there are quite a few that out eat him by a large amount. 

'Heightened metabolism' one man, the Captain, explained as he put away his fourth heaping plate of eggs on the second morning. It was the easy way the Captain explained it, like he's said these words a hundred, a thousand times before. It was just an explanation, a statement of fact and that helped to ease Quentin's discomfort. The Captain's quiet friend at his side nodded in agreement as he attacked his third heaping plate with a single minded purpose. 

And so Quentin doesn't allow feelings of shame to overwhelm him as he eats bowl after bowl of cereal. It is one of his new favorite things about this place, back home they had never invented this breakfast food. It's so simple and yet so delicious, it's strange to think that it's something his people had overlooked. 

He is polishing off a box of Tony's Iron Bran when he feels the vibration of the phone in his suit notifying him of a message. He puts his spoon down and pulls out his phone surprised to instead see an incoming call with visual. Tony had sent him many texts at seemingly random times throughout the last few days to check up on him while he was elsewhere with his family. 

A kindness he swore to find a way to pay back in time once he's gotten his feet under him again. Quentin hits accept on the call and his screen fills with the image of Tony's face.

"Hey Q, how's the world's most mysterious man's schedule look this morning?" 

"Good morning Tony." Quentin answers with a smile, enjoying how Tony always speaks so familiarly with him. Like he's a long time friend instead of being barely better than a stranger. "I think I can manage to squeeze some time in for you in between breakfast and my afternoon brooding. What do you have in mind?"

"How about a field trip? You haven't left that bunker since you crash landed on Earth, like some princess locked away in a tower waiting for rescue. Let me be your knight in shining red and gold armor. Come with me and I can show you the world. Or at least my super top secret lab/workshop in my basement."

"I didn't understand half of what you said, but it's not like I have anything better to do." Quentin answers honestly. Tony's lips twitch slightly as if he is fighting either a frown or a smile, Quentin can't be sure which.

"Right, I'll have to get Friday to send you the same info dump we made up for Thor. It won't be up to date, but since you might know even less than he does what with being a living, breathing, walking, AND talking proof of the multiverse theory it'll be better than nothing. 

"I will take pity on you and dumb the way I talk down, a little. I'll try to refrain from busting out my impressive reference game until you've had a chance to study our ways. 

To put it simply as possible: You. Me. The Kid. We all bring our best toys and have a show and tell. A bit of what we like to call: I'll show you mine if you show me yours. 

"Okay, that sounds great. I would love to see how technology has evolved on your planet versus my own."

"Great! It's a date then! So I'll fly on by pick you up in oh, how about 20 minutes? That enough time for you to doll up for our play date?" Quentin nods. "Good, be there in 20." Tony says before he ends the video call.

A Tony shaped distraction sounds like just what Quentin needs today. The man is larger than life and he knows it, but somehow despite it he doesn't come off like an asshole who is full of himself. Which isn't to say he's not full of himself--he clearly is BUT it's justified. According to Dr. Strange the fate of this universe had rested upon Tony's shoulders, at least until the multiverse threw them a curve ball in the form of one Quentin Beck that is.

Quentin wastes no time cleaning up after himself in the kitchen and washing the bowl and spoon he had used. He had already made sure he was presentable before he left his quarters but if he were being invited into the other man's home? That's an entirely different story than wandering halls meant to house fellow warriors and heroes in their down time or in recovery.

He goes back to his rooms and tames his hair into a neat side part that he favored in days gone by. There is nothing he can do for his sunken cheeks, nor the bags under his eyes that speak of his inability to sleep the night before. He rubs a hand over his chin as he stares at himself in the mirror.

It'll have to do. At least he's a sight better than when he had woken up in the medical ward, and Tony had seen him then and not ran for the hills anyway.

Satisfied Quentin returns to the common areas of the building to await Tony's arrival. He doesn't have to wait long before there is a quiet whirr of moving machine parts that catches Quentin's attention to look up as a panel in the wall opens. He watches as Tony in the beautiful red and gold suit lands with a soft clink as it's metal boots hit the concrete. The helmet dissolves away from Tony's face, not too unlike how his own helmet does when he no longer needs it.

Tony walks into the room and Quentin meets him halfway with his arm extended for a handshake. Pleasantries are exchanged in a rushed manner, both openly eager to examine the other's tech. 

Tony leads him to the hangar and to what Tony calls a quinjet. Quentin listens with rapt attention as Tony explains how the aircraft uses a mixture of turbines, jet engines, and wings to fly much faster than Quentin has seen before. With each question Quentin asks and Tony answers a dozen more spring up.

The flight from the Avengers base to Tony's home seems to be over in between one blink and the next Quentin was so entranced by the detailed answers and explanations Tony gives. The man is clearly well versed in everything he speaks about, and his enthusiasm for technology is infectious. Quentin thinks he would make an excellent teacher if he so chose.

He was so caught up in learning about the design and how the discovery of flight evolved on this world that he hadn't thought to look out the window to see the world that would be his home with his own eyes. He feels the loss of it but pushes it away, telling himself that he'll be able to take a good look on the way back later. 

As he follows Tony down the ramp and the man's home is revealed Quentin can't help but stop for a moment to take it in. The large wooden home is surrounded by tall, lush, green trees. It has been so long since he's seen trees like this, older than any man could be. 

They had planted many seeds on his world, but they had so much ground to cover that they hardly had the time to watch them grow. He hasn't seen more than the barest of sprouts in years, seeing this? Being in the heart of an old forest? It's breathtaking. 

Quentin takes in the sights and smells of life all around him and feels the darkness in his heart recede that much more. Life may have not turned out how he thought it would, and there has been so much loss, but in the face of all the life around him it's a little easier to see what could be. 

He knows he will struggle back and forth between sorrow of all that which was lost and all that he could stand to gain. He will have his days where even getting out of bed will be a struggle, and others where he might forget the darkness entirely, if for but a short time. 

Today is looking to turn into one of the good ones, one of the ones he'll have to hold onto to fight against the darkness of lonely nights to come. He crouches down and runs his fingers through the grass, savoring the feeling for a long moment before standing and looking towards Tony.

The man doesn't hide the fact that he was watching Quentin, another thing the Champion of Gaea appreciates. Many would pretend to not see another in a weak moment, would take pity on someone like him, but not Tony. He meets his eyes dead on, but not with an ounce of pity in them. 

No his eyes are full of understanding, as if he can see into Quentin and on some level understand his struggles. He doesn't try to hide away from Quentin's loss, instead he stands witness to it. Giving it weight, giving it meaning, and sharing in the burden of it if by just the smallest of ways.

"It's beautiful." Quentin says simply gesturing to both Tony's home and the surrounding area. 

"Just wait till you see inside, it'll blow your mind. I have the best toys, because I made them all myself and lucky for you, I enjoy sharing with those who I know will truly appreciate them." 

Tony leads him into his home where they are greeted by an enthusiastic Peter who talks a mile a minute and bounces on his feet with the energy only the youth can have. This is the first Quentin has seen of the kid outside of the Spider-Man suit and it makes his age even more apparent.

According to the laws of this land he isn't yet an adult, not quite 18, and yet he has the burden of a responsibility so great few adults could even handle. Quentin had seen some of the darkness that kind of weight puts on a person reflected back at him from Peter's eyes when they had first met and again in the medical room. Those bright eyes had a knowing look as they watched when Quentin had a panic attack.

Those eyes don't hold any darkness now, they are bright and full of life. Peter rambles about how cool the lab downstairs is and how Quentin just has to check it out. His excitement is infectious and overpowering to the point that for the several hours of Peter excitedly showing off his suit's abilities Quentin is able to forget his pain. 

Tony and Peter take turns showing off and explaining in detail the inner workings of both the Spider-Man suit and the Iron Man to Quentin. Despite Peter's age his knowledge of science and technology is impressive. 

Quentin asks Tony if that is normal with kids Peter's age but Tony shakes his head with a smile as he says that very few are as bright as Peter, making the kid blush at the praise. He goes on to say that even without Peter's special abilities the kid would have popped up on his radar eventually with how bright of a kid he is.

That seems to genuinely surprise Peter but before the teen can ask about it Tony changes the subject and informs Quentin it's his turn for 'show and tell'. Quentin releases the eye clasps that attach the cloak to the breast plate. He lays it out on the bench and starts explaining that the fabric itself is made of a material designed to absorb light and convert it to energy much like a plant would.

Following Tony's examples of how to use the holographic system he zooms in on the threads of ultra thin metal and plastic that make up the cloak. He explains that unlike either Tony's or Peter's suits there isn't a need for underlying circuitry as his suit transfers the energy directly to him through his magic.

That quickly devolves into having to explain how the suit and him are linked on a molecular level as he poured his magic into it while crafting bonding them both. Unlike Tony's and Peter's nano tech that could be accessed by anyone with clearance to do so his suit would be useless to all but him. In a way, the suit and him were one.

Tony seems to get a real kick out of that. Says he is Iron Man, the suit is just an extension of his will and that not just a tool to him. Maybe it doesn't have the fancy magic Quentin's does, but the feeling of being one with their suits is something they share.

Piece by piece Quentin takes off his suit answering many questions about what materials were used to make it and how to replicate them. Peter, somewhat of a chemist himself, is most excited to find out if he can replicate the living gold metal of the breast plate.

Under Tony's watchful guidance of course, he corrects with a shrug at the pointed look Tony sends him. 

Eventually Quentin is down to the form fitting undersuit and explains with a blush that this is as much as he can show them of it as he doesn't have any other clothing. A small oversight on all of their parts. Peter tells him he ‘knows that feel bro’ with a pat on his back.

Apparently his old suit that did not use the nano tech was made of a stretchy material called spandex and was designed to be worn directly over his skin. It made quickly changing out of his super hero outfit to his regular one awkward and blew his cover on two memorable occasions.

Quentin wants to ask about what he means by cover but gets the impression that conversation would end up being a loaded question so he files that away as something to look up later with Friday. Instead he continues to explain the workings of the inner suit. He pats the little bulges in the suit and explains that he designed and pushed the suit to the extremes of efficiency and minimizing waste.

The fabric would wick the moisture from his body and store it in segments after filtering out the salt and other minerals from his sweat so he could drink it when water would be scarce. The minerals in turn were not wasted and were often used to make repairs on anything damaged or as replacement for anything that was wearing out. 

"Oh my god, Tony he's uh, you know that really old movie with the giant worms in the desert?" Peter interrupts excitedly. "I mean look he's even got the unnaturally bright blue eyes and everything!" Tony rolls his eyes and lets out a put upon sigh at the teen's antics. 

"What have I told you about pop culture references?"

"Come on man, you can't tell me you don't see it when you look at him? He's totally a dead ringer for uh, what's his name Mua...maua...I don't know Paul? Tall, dark, and um handsome? Okay I'll stop talking now."

"Okay one: I'm not touching any of that with a ten foot pole, two: He's worse off than Thor and I already promised him I'd cut back on the references so that means you too. Got it short stack?"

"Yes Sir." Peter says then turns back to Quentin "Sorry." Quentin can't hold back the confused laugh, he has no idea what just happened but their dynamic is entertaining at least.

"It's fine, really Peter. I don't mind being a little lost, at least when it seems to be a comparison done in good humor."

"Oh yeah no! That dude was a total badass! Like the part where he--oh yeah right. Um we'll have to show you it sometime, it's a..." Peter trails off as his face goes in and out of focus before Quentin's eyes. Quentin squints trying to get his eyes to focus but the lights all around him alternate between dim and too bright making it impossible.

"Hey are you okay? You don't look too good." Peter asks with open worry in his voice. Quentin shakes his head trying to clear it but that turns out to be a mistake as the world tilts sideways and he loses his equilibrium. Peter reaches out half catching him when he pitches forward.

Quentin leans into the teen needing his support as the strength is sapped from his body. He doesn't know what's happening to him, it almost feels like his powers are being slowly drained. Not that he had more than the bare minimum for survival since Gaea had sacrificed herself.

"Looks like you have caught me again Peter. Careful, it's becoming a habit." Quentin jokes with a shaky voice even as he holds on tight needing the support.


	6. Mystical and Mundane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Stephen Strange and friends work tirelessly to figure out the cause of Quentin's weakening condition and struggle to find a solution.

Days turn into a week which then turns into two and they are no closer to finding a solution for what ails the man from another universe. The ongoing failure weighs heavily on the Sorcerer Supreme. This is his area, his specialty, what he was put on this world for. 

Long has he bragged about his impressive knowledge of the mystical and before this he had every right to. Now? He's no better than a bumbling first year medical student who is still struggling with the basics being stuck as the only semi-professional on a plane when someone has a heart attack 30,000 feet in the air. The will and desire to help is there, but not the knowledge.

There are texts upon texts about alternate timelines, divergent universes and how to traverse time without making a mess of your own timeline. The ancient one had bequeathed the journals of her exploits of having been the keeper of the time stone for so long. A wealth of knowledge at his fingertips.

All useless.

The theories of a multiverse, not divergent but separate entirely was not a popular one amongst the magical community. Those theories were the domain of the outliers in the scientific community. Those that bordered on the side of science fiction. There was little to no support for what most of the world deemed 'high thoughts'.

Just goes to show you that the more you think you know the less you see of what could be. Stephen thought he was past this when he had to accept that not only magic was real and that it fundamentally changed his understanding of how the universe works. He held so much scientific knowledge, things he knew beyond a doubt, and they were wrong.

The Ancient One had spoken just once of the multiverse to him, she spoke of infinite worlds of infinite possibilities. She spoke of other dimensions where dark powers older than time laid in wait, one of which he had the misfortune of having to meet face to face. Dormammu, whom he thought was not of another universe, but a creature of the dark dimension.

Stephen had wrongly assumed that the multiverse she had spoken of was her way of speaking of the infinite dimensions within this one. If she had not been so secretive, if they had more time perhaps she would have caught and corrected his mistaken assumption. 

Neither of those things had come to pass. It is a waste to spend time regretting the past when the future is still uncertain for the man who stayed the death sentence Stephen had given Tony Stark. 

It took days to figure out what was even wrong with Quentin Beck, his biology, magic, and aura were all not quite right when compared to those in this universe. What was his normal? How did the separation of man and deity affect one? What effect did the stone's powers have? The man bares the lightning pattern scars along his arm from his brief use of the gauntlet that brought even the Hulk to his knees.

There were just too many variables. It could be one of infinite things, or a complication from all of them together. While the man's steady declining magic is a red flag for the problem being magical in nature they cannot rule out anything. 

The Sorcerer Supreme, for the first time in a thousand years, opens the doors of the inner sanctum to those with no magical knowledge nor ability. Many among the ranks of his sorcerers are uncertain by his decision but wisely keep their opinions away from the newcomers. 

Stephen had brought The Archmage, Tony Stark and his ward with him after getting a priority warning message from Stark's AI. At the time the man's condition did not seem too dire, almost as if he had just over exerted himself after the traumas he had suffered. Magic such as his is tied directly to his life force, so it wouldn't be a surprise if it was being drained keeping the man walking and talking after the damage done when he harnessed the infinity stones.

The Sorcerer Supreme was still so confident of a quick solution back then, and why wouldn't he be? A millennia of knowledge at his fingertips and an order of devoted sorcerers to rely upon? He once defeated an interdimensional being and stopped the merging of dimensions with only a handful of the order and nearly none of the knowledge he has now. 

This should have been simple.

It wasn't. He had done test after test, cast spell after spell to no avail. After the third day he had to admit he was stumped and needed Stark's help once again. The technical and engineering genius was beyond smug when Stephen admitted his knowledge was limited and another great mind would be needed. 

As smug as the man was to hear that at first he kept it as professional as he was able to once they began to brainstorm possibility after possibility in earnest. Dr. Banner was brought in and his own wounds from his use of the infinity stones were examined and compared to those sported by Mr. Beck.

The damage to Dr. Banner's arm was all encompassing, nerves were blown out, scarring down to the bone where the rainbow lightning touched flesh. His use of the arm was limited to the point that as a medical doctor Stephen recommended to the scientist that a prosthetic limb similar to which Sgt. Barnes had would be the best option. Banner takes Shuri's card that Stephen wills into being and promises to call when he gets the time.

Mr. Beck's arm is not nearly as damaged as the Hulk's. Quentin theorizes that he was spared the total cost of using the gauntlet when Gaea took form from within him. There was never any way to avoid the cost, but she took the vast majority of it sparing his life and arm. 

His arm sports the same pattern of lightning scares but the nerve damage was minimal and since he lacked chakra pathways his ability to form and use magic with that arm should work as it had before. In theory. With his reserves so low when they tried to test it the man passed out from the strain before there was a detectable difference in magic. 

Most unfortunate, Stephen had commented and earned himself a dirty look from Stark's ward. Often Stephen has been accused of being heartless, and in the past he most certainly was. A prideful man looking out only for himself, for what he could gain instead of who he could help. 

Nowadays he is just as prideful, if not more so, but it is not himself that he is looking out for, it is for everything and everyone on Earth. He can ill afford to worry about how he may appear to trivialize a person's feelings when there is so much more at stake. Perhaps he could have chosen another way to convey regret at the failed experiment that could have narrowed down causes of the man's condition, but what difference would it make? He's here to save the man's life, not tip toe around the worries of a child who should not even be involved in any of this.

As it turns out Stephen's assumption that Stark's ward had no place in this situation was another thing he was wrong about it. The kid's knowledge of materials and his creativity in thinking of ways to harness their unique properties in ways no one else would have thought of.

"Quentin seems to phase in and out, like he's vibrating on a different frequency than this universe. Is there some way we can use the properties of Vibranium to, I don't know, stabilize him in our universe maybe?" Parker asks excitedly.

Stark slaps his hands down on the workbench he brought in and jumps up to clap the kid on his back. 

"You're a genius, and that means a lot coming from me."

Stephen's mind races as he digs deep into his knowledge about Vibranium, a metal well known to the magical community. It is most commonly used to protect non magic users from the effects of magic as its other worldly properties disrupt magic. The most common use of the material is for special bindings to prevent errant sorcerers from doing harm.

Something niggles at the back of his mind, he closes his eyes and concentrates to picture what it is. His photographic memory coming to play once more and there he has it! His eyes snap open and he summons one of The Ancient One's personal journals from a portal.

Pages fly by as he seeks out answers until he finds the entry. 

_The properties of Vibranium have long been seen as a bane against magic users, but it is my firm belief that if someone were to solve the frequency equation instead of hindering magic, it could enhance it far beyond conventional means currently available to us. As it stands my knowledge of magic alone is not enough, perhaps the as of yet fledgling 'science' that has been growing will play a role in unlocking its mysteries._

The journal entry was dated back a hundred years in the past. It sometimes amazes Stephen even now to comprehend the long life his mentor had lived before him. To predate modern science, to watch it grow and come into its own. Astounding.

Stephen reads the passage aloud and he can see the rapid fire thoughts and ideas behind Stark's eyes. If anyone were to be the Scientist Supreme it would be him. 

"We need Shuri." Stark's mouth says while his mind is busy with a thousand other thoughts. Stephen opens a portal and steps through to Wakanda, surprising said expert on Vibranium. 

It is no effort to convince her to bring some samples of Vibranium in varying states of refinement with her as they go back to the sanctum.

"Another broken white boy, why am I not surprised." She mutters to herself before getting to work.

Over the course of the next 12 hours they make more progress than the two weeks prior, and its none too soon with how weak Beck has become. All the energy in his body is being used just to keep him here, and the seizures where his body phases out of this reality are becoming more frequent and more violent.

Vibranium alone is not enough to solve their problem, but even in its raw form it seems to sooth the man's tremors. It's not long before they make the decision to move to Wakanda with their far superior equipment to get better readings. 

Test after test goes on, but hope is building even as the vast majority of them fail. It's late into the third night in Wakanda when Shuri shouts, "Eureka!" Those who were cat napping in chairs nearby awakened with a jump and the excitement in the room was palatable. 

"I found the frequency! With this we can try to mix your magic with my tech-" Tony coughs loudly "-our tech!" Shuri exclaims.

Stark and Shuri spend the next 20 minutes explaining how it, like Beck, is not of this universe, but the strange metal could possibly act as a tuning fork. To help align Beck with this universe, but the power needed to 'tune' it to Beck would be immense. Stark spouts off numbers and equivalents in terms of raw power needed when Stephen silences him with a raised finger.

Raw power. There is one he knows with immense raw power that could do this with his expertise, with his finesse. He may be the Sorcerer Supreme but that doesn't mean he holds the most raw magical ability, he just knows the most about how to harness his power. If The Scarlet Witch could ever master her powers she would give him a run for his money.

Wild magic. Dangerous, and unpredictable, but very powerful. The young woman had been practicing control on her own after the snap, but Stephen could help her so much more, and he plans to after they solve the mystery of Quentin Beck. Long has the Order of Sorcerers turned a blind eye to those who use wild magic, but no longer.

Wong arrives with The Scarlet Witch in tow and they all get together to come up with a game plan. Engineer, Scientist, Sorcerer, Witch, and Chemist. It is surprisingly easy for them all to work together on this common goal. Wildly different backgrounds and base knowledge and yet they come together smoothly.

Seamlessly as if they are all part of a bigger whole. The Sorcerer Supreme can feel it in his bones that this is right. That they were always meant to work together. He had turned down offers to be an Avenger, thinking it best to keep magic out of the mundane world, but he can see how wrong he was. Everything is interconnected, to blind one's self to an aspect of the world is beyond foolish. Perhaps it was needed in olden times, but with Gods walking the streets and alien invasions it is well past time to try and sugar coat the world for the masses.

The cat is out of the proverbial bag, there is no going back to simpler times.

They work tirelessly together and make much headway now that they seem to have all the pieces of the puzzle together for once. They make a pair of bracers out of Vibranium and with Shuri's expertise and the wild magic user's immense power Stephen weaves runes of magic into the bracers on a molecular level. 

Stark monitors the frequency of their magic, the bracer's, and Quentin's to make sure they are in balance at all times. The process is slow, as they can ill afford to make a mistake at this juncture with the man's failing health. It's all the Stark ward can do to keep the man conscious as what little of his magical life energy is slowly being fed into the bracers.

Time both seems to both stand still and rush by as they work together to save the man's life. The air is tense around them as Stephen incants spell after spell guiding Maximoff's magic and binding the bracers to Beck. 

The Sanctum is home to a wide variety of magical artifacts, but they are fickle creations that chose their masters. Magic, not unlike men, have their own preferences and will simply not work for those they dislike. The cape had chosen Stephen, for he was not so different from the creator long ago who gave it life.

Unbelievable wonders crafted by grand masters of the arcane arts surround him on a daily basis, but he never thought he'd be one to create something of his own. Although he does not make them by himself, nor for his benefit. 

As he utters the last spell the room goes silent, they all hold their collective breaths as they wait to see if it worked. Throughout the spell casting Beck's health had been sorely taxed as his own magical energy was needed for the incantations. It had taken all of Parker's super human strength to hold the man still while they worked.

His skin had gone ashen and his aura became so faint as to almost disappear from Stephen's mystical sight. Slowly, oh so slowly color returns to the man's face and his tremors subside. He takes one shaky breath as his eyes focus for the first time in hours to look around the room at the people who just saved his life before his eyes close and he goes limp in Parker's arms.

There is a brief moment of panic that their efforts were too late but Stephen raises a hand silencing any outburst before it can begin. 

"He's going to be okay, this was to be expected with his energy levels being critical before we even started. He'll recover in due time. Already his aura, although faint, is a much healthier dark green color." Stephen announces giving Stark's ward a squeeze on the shoulder in reassurance. 

The kid was struggling, and failing, to hold back his tears afraid for fear of his new friend. Perhaps it was cruel to have the kid, barely more than a child, be the one to hold Beck still during what could have very well been his last moments but the kid had selflessly offered to do it. 

Wanted to even. As if it was the least he could do, not worrying about how badly it would affect him if they had failed. If he had to hold a dying man in his arms. Stephen is grateful that that had not come to pass, but he can see it in the kid's eyes that he knew what he was doing and he did it anyway.

Stephen can see why Stark took him under his wing, the kid has the makings of a great hero. Already he has shown more heart than most grown men Stephen has known, and yet Stephen feels regret that the kid's childlike innocence has been stripped away by the responsibility of the gifts he has been given. 

"You did good, kid." Stark says as he wraps an arm around the kid's shoulders and Stephen thinks that it might just be okay for Parker.


	7. Bed Rest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Quentin share a moment while Quentin is recovering.

Quentin makes a speedy recovery with the aid of the magical bracers, bracers that will be his life long companion in this world. He stays in Wakanda as they monitor his recovery over the next few days while his very nearly depleted energy levels recover. During that time Peter is often at his bedside holding his hand, and not just for Quentin's sake but his own.

It hit Peter really hard when Quentin came close to dying in his arms, left him really shook up and ever since he's been mother henning the older man even more than before. Quentin grabs Peter's hand after the 5th time he goes to fluff his pillow to stop him.

"I'm okay Peter, really." He tells the younger man staring earnestly into his eyes. "You saved me, Dr. Strange, Princess Shuri, and Tony all say I'll make a full recovery." Peter bows his head awkwardly.

"I know, I know. I just can't help it. I was so close to losing you, of-of having someone else that I--that I care for just slipping away in my arms while I watched. I can't-" 

Quentin cuts him off when he pulls the slim teen atop him. Even surprised the kid's natural reflexes make sure he doesn't tumble down in a heap and hurt the recovering man. Quentin wraps his arms around Peter's thin frame and holds him tightly against his chest.

"I'm so sorry Peter. I didn't-I didn't know. That's a terrible thing to go through once, to make you almost do it again. . ." Peter sniffles and shakes his head against Quentin's chest.

"No, no one made me. I wanted to be there for you, it's just. I don't know. It hit close to home and really scared me." Peter squeezes back, but always so careful with his strength. 

"You're amazing Peter, no you really are. Thank you, having you here with me through all this has meant a lot to me. For you to be so kind to someone you just met, to go so far to help me, you're a real hero." 

Peter pops his head up to look at Quentin, their faces are so close and their position so intimate it makes Quentin's heart stop in surprise. Big brown eyes bore into his soul, he could get lost staring if he let himself. There is a weak tug in his chest, but he has not the strength nor the will to acknowledge it so he lets it pass without giving it thought.

"Well, you did save me first. And the world. The universe. and Everything. So really I guess we're even?" Peter jokes breaking the brief spell over Quentin with a crooked smile that Quentin returns automatically.

"Whatever you say kid." Quentin ruffles the kid's hair playfully but the expression he makes at the touch gives the older man pause. He's seen that look on his own face, like a simple touch is a gift. Something yearned for desperately but never asked for. Peter should not feel this way, why hadn't Tony or anyone else reached out to the kid who is so obviously in need of some human affection?

He has much to learn of this world, and it's people but he feels that he should start here. With Peter. As smoothly as possible Quentin asks Peter about himself. At first his answers are stilted, not used to someone showing genuine interest but he warms up quickly when faced with Quentin's earnestness.

Turns out the kid has a lot to say, about nearly everything. He tells Quentin about how he got his powers, having never known his parents, having lost his uncle and how hard his aunt worked to keep a roof over his head. Throughout it all Quentin listens intently and traces random patterns on Peter's back over his shirt.

Bit by bit the kid melts into him as he shares his story, his burden with Quentin until nothing is left. All the anxiety, fear, and worry flows out of his body leaving him boneless and safe in Quentin's arms. He goes quiet for a long time before his shoulder tense minutely under Quentin's hands.

"Thank you." He whispers barely a breath of sound. Quentin grips Peter's shoulders reassuringly and tilts his head down to brush his lips on the top of messy brown hair. The kid sucks in a startled breath that he lets out in a sigh so full of contentment the older man's heart lurches once more in his chest.

Right then and there he decides that whatever state this world is in, he'll be there for Peter. Everything else be damned this kid needs him. He makes a silent vow to once again become the kind of man Peter can rely on when he has been so clearly let down by everyone else. He makes plans and yet more plans, having a goal for the first time since his universe died instead of merely existing.

It relights a fire within him he long thought dead. His work with Gaea had been integral but it was always too grand, too final. He did what must be done but he didn't truly have something to live for, at least until now. One might think that going from saving a universe to saving one teen would be a step down but that is not how it works. One life, can be worth everything if it is the right one, and deep within him Quentin knows that Peter is special, even if he doesn't yet understand the scope of it.

Some hours later Quentin awakens after not realizing he had even fallen asleep in the first place. It takes a moment for the fog of sleep to dissipate from his mind and so he is confused as to why there is a warm weight on his chest and hip, he blinks open his eyes and looks down to see a sleep ruffled brown head of hair using his chest as a pillow. 

Oh. That is a pleasant surprise, how long has it been since he had fallen asleep in the arms of another? Blue eyes flick up when he feels eyes on him from across the room. Tony's brown eyes bore into him, the stare is intense and calculating, no doubt that was what had awoken the Champion from his slumber. Even asleep he possesses an innate sense for danger. Tony stares at him without blinking for long seconds before flicking down to the precious person asleep in Quentin's arms.

Tony gives Quentin a tight nod before turning on his heel and leaving the room. Quentin doesn't really understand what just transgressed but he feels judged, weighed, and found wanting. 

Tony may not be Peter's father by blood but what they share is something special, but why is it that Peter is so insecure of himself? Of his worth? Why would Tony let Peter feel so worthless, why would he let him get so down that he would seek comfort in the arms of a strange man he just met?

Quentin doesn't have the facts, none of them. He can see clear as day the affection the man has for Peter shining in his eyes, as if the kid is his son, but why wouldn't he be there for him? In the end it doesn't matter, it changes nothing on Quentin's end. Tony said nothing and made no move to step in just now so he will leave it alone. For now.

It will be enough, he will be enough for Peter. He swears it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's gonna get shippy from here on out folks :D Tags have been updated accordingly and subject to more change as it progresses tehe
> 
> Might be a while before next update but who knows? Busy week ahead ahh well.


	8. Books and Weights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quentin recovers from his ordeal and works on improving his magic and regaining his lost health with the help of the Avengers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp turns out stress has made me write up a storm instead of stopping me haha. Enjoy another chapter that ended up getting away from me as I wrote. ^_^

After leaving Wakanda with a clean bill of health Quentin took The Sorcerer Supreme's offer to stay at the sanctum to see if he could be taught to use his magic in the same ways as those of this universe. The Scarlet Witch decided to join him in becoming pupils under the knowledgeable leader of the mystics. Dr. Strange told them that since their powers stemmed from within themselves that it would be easier for the both of them to work together and help one another master his lessons.

The first few weeks were the most challenging for Quentin as his powers were slow to recover and it frustrated him to not be able to do more than the most minor of feats. Neither Wanda, nor Dr. Strange showed any signs of frustration at his slow progress, in fact Wanda was always telling him to relax. That he was pushing too hard, too fast and that she worried about him.

She was right of course, and by the end of the first month his powers had returned to nearly full strength. The lessons themselves were proving to be more challenging than any of them had thought they would be. 

The sorcerers of the sanctum drew their energy from other dimensions, as they did not have magic within themselves, and as such much of their spell work revolved around pulling outside energy in. When Wanda or Quentin would try simple spells themselves something always went wrong. Usually in a big, destructive way. 

The Sorcerer Supreme would disappear for long hours in the library pouring over tome after tome trying to come up with a solution while he sent Quentin off to help Wanda practice control over her raw power. 

Eventually The Sorcerer Supreme lived up to his name and rediscovered long thought lost knowledge on how to train those with innate gifts. It was a learning experience for all three of them as they poured over dusty tomes and practiced in the safety of the mirror dimension. 

Quentin will never forget the elation he felt when he cast his first spell born of this world, nor will he forget Wanda's first. She jumped up and down excitedly and jumped up to give Dr. Strange a crushing hug that left the man looking down right flabbergasted and uncomfortable before launching herself at Quentin who caught her happily. They spun around dancing in joy celebrating their great accomplishment.

But it wasn't all spell books and meditation for Quentin, he had regular meetings with Thor The God of Thunder at least 3 times a week to work out. Neither of them were where they wanted to be with their bodies, where they were before the choices of a mad titan had come at them like a freight train. 

The two of them would spend an hour or three at Stark's state of the art gym working out together. For Thor he focused on cardio as not even the great Tony Stark's machines could prove a challenge in weight for the God. It was a good thing because he was the perfect spotter for Quentin as he worked on rebuilding his lost muscle mass.

The two grew closer by the day as they worked out and talked about their lost homes. They laughed and got teary eyed together as the conversations went, they even ate their meals together. Rodney was first to comment how having the too skinny Quentin sitting next to the too big Thor was a great happy accident to keep to meal plans. How could Thor overeat when sat next to a man who looked half starved?

The God of Thunder, used to sharp jokes at his expense from living thousands of years with his brother Loki, didn't take any of the jabs to heart. It sat wrong with Quentin though, these people were supposed to be friends and yet Thor was made the butt of nearly half the jokes when other Avengers were around. 

"Why do you let them talk to you like that?" Quentin asked one time after a particularly rude remark. Thor just laughed and clapped him on the back.

"It is because when I first met these people I looked down upon them. They were mere mortals and I a God! It was several years before I truly understood their value and felt shame for my constant belittlement of their feats. They had the grace to not take my poor manners to heart and thus I should do the same!" 

Thor leaned in close as if to share a secret with the other man.

"I have learned in this world, with these fine examples of humanity's best, that the more trash talk you get the more they like you. It is a strange thing I know. At first I too wrongly assumed that the team hated one another but if you look closely you will see the love between them all. The beautiful late Natasha, a true shame you will have never gotten to meet her, had the sharpest bites of all, but the sweetest smiles when you were low and needed it the most.

"Worry not my friend, no doubt you too will fully join the ranks of the Avengers. When they get to know you as I have gotten to know you they will shower you with love and rude comments as is their way." Thor promised him with a bright smile between bites of his salad.

Quentin nodded, not yet understanding but accepting it for what it is. Over the next few months of trips to and fro from the sanctum and the Avengers headquarters he had a chance to observe and interact with many of the people who came together to save the universe and he could not deny what Thor had told him.

Insults were exchanged as greetings even as hugs were exchanged. It seems that is just the way of these people who have seen and known so much strife and suffering in their lifetimes. It was almost a therapeutic outlet as they joked darkly with one another, and Quentin couldn't find fault with it as no one was "given more shit than they could handle" as The Falcon put it once.

There were some who were never joked about, at least not to their faces and that was Quentin and Peter. With Quentin it was obvious he was an outsider in the very literal sense and the sense of closeness. He had merely fought one battle with them unlike the others who had spent years fighting the good fight.

Only Tony would make offhand comments, but unlike with the others his word choice and tone were always careful. As if he knew what it was like for Quentin, which it turns out he did know. 

On one of the rare visits Tony made to the compound while Quentin was there Tony invited him down into the workshop with him to watch him as he worked. That alone was a great show of trust and a gift to be treasured for the Champion of Gaea. 

Technology and science were always his strongest suits, unlike many of the Champions who had come before him. It is said that each Champion is a representation of the people, of where the whole of society is going. They are meant to help lead the people of Gaea by shining example.

Champions of old were leaders, generals, priests, and teachers. Whatever the people needed them most to be, it became their destiny. Life on Gaea had settled, there were no wars in Quentin's time, nor in the Champion's before him. His predecessors had paved the way for humanity to live with one another in peace and harmony. Not to say that there weren't outliers who wrought death and destruction, but they were few and far between. 

Marcus Antony, the Champion before Quentin, was a kind man who taught and guided the people of Gaea into a spiritual awakening. His teachings soothed the masses and brought them closer together. It was through his guidance that many were able to unlock the smallest pieces of Gaea within themselves.

They could not control her magic, that was still solely the domain of the Archmage, but under his guidance those who opened themselves up to Gaea were able to feel her love. Not just within themselves, but within others. It helped to sooth the bitter resentments left over from wars fought in times past. 

How can someone think their fellow man a monster when they can feel the same warmth of life that lives in their chest beat in another's? So many of their unsolvable problems suddenly became solvable once neither side could demonize the other. 

By the time Quentin was born society had adapted to accept the truth that everyone truly were brothers and sisters in the eyes of The Mother. That her love flowed through them all equally, without exception. No man, woman, nor child was any better or more deserving of her love than any other, once people accepted that truth life became so much better.

They no longer needed the wise spiritual leader and teacher, instead they could focus outside themselves for the first time in far too long. Science and technology took great leaps and bounds during Quentin's time. The man himself was near the forefront of the scientific reawakening. 

Holographic interfaces for the masses was one of his accomplishments, along with leaps and bounds in protective gear. Every design he had invented and implemented in his own suit he made public. The very purpose of Gaea's Chosen has always been to protect their people, Quentin's own twist on that was a more literal sense.

He helped to develop fire proof suits for those who would fight against fire, he invented fabrics that would insulate the wear from even the extreme cold of space, and much more. He worked tirelessly to find ways to make the technology affordable to as many as possible. 

Tony, a fellow inventor and creator, showing interest in sharing their trade secrets? There is nothing he would enjoy more than to spend time with a someone of like mind as they trade off roles of teacher and student as they show off their respective technologies.

To say that Tony's technology was advanced would be an insult. The man was a genius before his time. He goes over and beyond with everything that he does, and the things that he does? He shares with his friends, with the world. 

They are alike in that respect, using their technology for the good of all. Times on this planet Quentin is remorseful to find out have not been nearly as peaceful as that on his own. Tony used to make technology solely built for wholesale destruction and death. His weapons were sold and used to hurt many innocents and even at one point himself.

Tony tells him the story of his time in Afghanistan during one of their "technobro meetups" as he puts it. It is crushing to hear the man speak of the suffering he went under from his own misguided mistakes. He tells Quentin that it was the lowest point of his life but he even if he could go back in time(which apparently he figured out how to do) he wouldn't change a thing.

"That cave, the bucket, Yensin, all of that had to happen to make me the man I am now. If none of that had happened I would have continued on my self destructive path and Iron Man wouldn't exist and without becoming Iron Man we could never have saved New York for Thanos's first invasion and all would have been lost.

"I regret many things in my life, things I have done to hurt those around me, things I can never make up for but in the end I've had to learn to accept it. There is no changing it, it had to happen. It sucks ass, giant stinky swamp ass at that, but it all needed to happen. I've had 5 long years to think about this shit and you know what I learned? Sometimes our best isn't enough but we can never give up, never let the horrors of the world drag us down with them.

"So you remember that when you finally go out into this big world of ours. You're gonna fuck up, people are going to get hurt but you have to remember what you are fighting for. Who you are fighting for." Tony gives him a long stare that Quentin meets. This another time they are having two separate conversations, one that Quentin isn't quite sure of still.

"Good talk." Tony says as a farewell when Quentin breaks eye contact and goes back to working on fine tuning a device as if he hadn't just had a heart wrenching tell all with the other man. They never mentioned it again when working on things during other visits, but then again Peter was along for the other visits as he too possesses a keen mind for technology.

Peter Parker. The teenager from Queens always seeks out Quentin when he tags along with Tony for a visit. He is the only other person to not get more than a comment about his age from his fellow Avengers. Perhaps that is due to them going soft on the youngest of their rank or perhaps they too can see the trauma that lurks behind his bright, young eyes.

Of all the Avengers Quentin has the easiest time talking with the teen. Like his father figure Tony, he rambles a mile a minute, but not in the same self absorbed way, instead he talks about his Aunt, his friends, and school. The kid has a big heart and cares so deeply for those few who are close to him.

Quentin soaks up everything Peter tells him about his life, the way he talks is just so full of life and joy it is infectious. A bad day where the Champion of Gaea is haunted by memories of those he has lost turns around whenever Peter stops by. It is just not possible to be down around the kid. Even if it is just him rambling about a new breakthrough in science or talking about helping a nice old lady cross a street and getting a cookie for his trouble, the energy in the kid's words will lift Quentin up.

Not to say there isn't a darkness behind Peter's eyes, he has his own ghosts who haunt him at night, but he is always pushing away his own troubles to help others. A noble goal if not an entirely healthy one. Quentin gets it, he really does. It is easier to help someone else rather than to help yourself or Gaea forbid, ask for help.

So Quentin makes sure the kid never has to ask. If he sees the teen looking a little rough around the edges, if he's a little jumpy(more so than what is normal for a teenage boy anyway) the older man will throw an arm over a shoulder, or pull him in for a hug. Peter soaks up the affection like a sponge, not that Quentin doesn't enjoy it himself.

Whenever he gives Peter a hug in greeting he is sure to never be the first one to let go. Whenever you are comforting someone he's learned that you hold them until they let go first so they get all that they need and don't have to feel awkward nor ashamed of their need. 

They end up hugging for long minutes more often than not, which has earned Quentin more than a few odd looks and pointed stares from Tony and others, but he doesn't care. What him and Peter share is none of anyone else's business, it's between them. 

Although it does give Quentin pause one night as he sits with Peter on the couch while he does his homework. Peter's legs lay draped over his lap and he rubs soothing circles loosening stiff muscles in Peter's calves. 

It is one of those weird moments where you step out of your body and mind and think about what you are doing looks like to the outside world. Here he is a grown man in his early 30's cuddled up with a 17 year old boy. They have gotten so familiar with one another that they constantly are touching in some way or another and don't even notice. When they had sat down Peter had put his legs in Quentin's lap without saying a word and the older man just automatically started rubbing them.

Fuck.

No wonder Tony has been weird with him, all those not-conversations. The pointed looks. From an outside view how they act with one another is down right intimate. Even though it isn't like that. They are just two broken people giving one another comfort, Quentin and Thor are the same with their affection. 

But that is not what it looks like. Peter is still a child by this world's laws and to be held by a grown man is a cause of worry for many. He is so sweet and innocent it is easy to see why people would be protective over him being taken advantage of, but Quentin would never do that. Not in a million years could he even conceive of twisting their pure affection for one another into something dark and carnal. 

He can't just stop, it wouldn't be right to take this away from Peter when he so obviously needs it. Quentin sighs internally, this is one of those situations where either way has down sides, but like Tony had said to him weeks ago, he needs to remember who he is fighting for. 

If people are going to look down upon him, so be it. Peter is worth it, his happiness and well being is far more important than what others mistakenly assume about Quentin's intentions. He will just have to be careful that none of this ever falls on Peter, the kid has enough to deal with as is.


	9. Imagine Dragons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda and Quentin plan a very special performance with the help of Dr. Strange and his sorcerers.

During the time that Dr. Strange had been snapped out of existence The Scarlet Witch had gained more control over her powers but she was still far below Quentin's finesse. It was quite fortuitous that Quentin is a very patient man with a nature well suited to mentoring others. A gift of his heritage no doubt. 

When Stephen had sent them off to practice control together while he researched how to make his magic work for them he hadn't expected anything like this to come of it. The sight of the two of them practicing control with one another was truly something to behold. Red and green swirls dance around them as they move together. The first time they practiced out in the courtyard together every sorcerer in the sanctum came to watch.

All of the sorcerers have studied magic and its wonders for many years, but there was something wonderful and awe inspiring about watching magical beings use their innate magic. Especially the way these two did it. Focus was key to finesse, but the method Wanda had chosen to gain focus was inspired. 

Dancing.

She had put on classical music from her country and had shown Quentin a few dances that he picked up quickly. Not even Stephen had known about their little dance lessons until they did it in the courtyard for the first time, and for once he was glad to have been left in the dark.

The surprise at seeing the two of them spinning around one another just as their magic around them spun and entwined was priceless. They moved together in harmony, complimenting each other perfectly as if they had practiced this their whole lives, but they hadn't. Their ability to synchronize with one another was a spell born of their powers and their growing closeness after many long hours studying and practicing together.

Their magic ebbed and flowed with their every step, their every move. The tempo rose and them with it as they slowly flew up and into the air not missing a step. Quite the feat for Wanda who couldn't fly so much as launch herself in the air just a short few months ago. Brightly glowing clouds of red and green lit up the sky around them as if they were the finale of a firework show. 

The Sanctum gave them a standing ovation when their dance finished, even the ever stoic Wong was moved nearly to tears. No small feat. 

Wanda's cheeks were tinted beautifully with her blush at the unexpected praise from so many. Quentin took her hand and they bowed as one before bursting out in joyful laughter. 

"Never in all my years have I seen such a beautiful display of magic." Wong commented at Stephen's side.

"Indeed." Stephen agreed, bringing his hands together before his chin in thought. Their performance went far beyond his expectations, their magical compatibility alone could very well be the stuff of legends. 

Stephen excused himself with a nod that went unnoticed and turned around his cape fluttering dramatically behind him. He made his way to the library to find a specific book about ancient ritual magic. The practice had all but died out over the centuries as the world grew larger and larger and sorcerers were seldom found in the same region, let alone the same village as it was in olden times.

Stephen pulled out the book and opened it up quickly reading through its text. Long ago ritual magic was more commonplace due to the practice of marrying sorcerers to one another. Their children would often be born with an affinity to magic and the blood relation made their magic compatible. The practice had died out when the Ancient One had begun traveling far and wide to recruit and unite the scattered magic users of this world.

In times gone past those of blood relation were able to channel their magics together into spells that a normal spell caster would have no hope of managing. Those, like the Ancient One and Stephen himself, possessed minds capable of performing intricate spells simultaneously and at great speed but it was a very rare gift to have. With ritual magic between two or more sorcerers the work was halved. They could split their focus on separate parts of the same spell and their magic, if compatible, would blend together as if done by one caster.

The probability of two of the most powerful innate magic users to walk the planet being compatible, when one was from an entirely different universe? Astronomically low. So low by any rights it should be zero. 

And yet. . .

It makes one think that perhaps there is some divine, or cosmic plan set in motion to have so many things align in such a way. There are whispers in the astral plane of those who watch. Of those who move tiny pieces of reality to shape the universe, and until Quentin came from nowhere to save the day, until these two danced it was easy to dismiss those whispers for fantasy. 

But no longer. 

It gives Stephen pause to wonder who and what these Watchers are. What are their goals? Are they the God of Gods and if so are their intentions benevolent? Or is everyone in the universe merely their play things, or characters in their story? 

What could be the destiny of his two pupils? Will they be the deus ex machina needed for the next Thanos level event? Was his purpose to teach them so that they could realize the full extents of their power? Was that the grand destiny The Ancient One had seen when she looked at him?

Such thoughts could drive a man to madness, or give him delusions of grandeur beyond what he really is. For the time being he must push such thoughts aside and do as he was taught by his mentor. She possessed wisdom beyond that of any mortal and had foreseen that he would do many great things if he stayed true to himself and trusted his heart instead of his head.

And what did his heart tell him? That like Tony Stark, they too would play a role in future events beyond the scope of his current understanding. He would train them, teach them to master their powers, but like with Stark they must not know that they will play a role. 

He takes the book from the shelf and places it in his robes for safe keeping. Now is not the time to skip ahead, they still have the most basic of spell work to learn and master. The time will come, but he feels that rushing would be a mistake especially so soon after the events at the battle of the gauntlet. 

\--------------------------

Six months to the day after Quentin stepped through the portal into this universe and already so much has changed. Much of his weight has returned with his regular sessions with Thor, his powers are stronger than ever with all the training he has gotten alongside Dr. Strange and Wanda, and his once perpetually lonesome life is full of friendly faces.

It seemed proper to celebrate with a show to give thanks to the many who have helped him during his difficult adjustment phase. His partner, Wanda also had much to be thankful for had agreed excitedly when Quentin told her what he had in mind. It didn't hurt that she loved dancing with a partner, she hadn't had one, not since Vision, or her brother before him. She took it as an opportunity to dance in celebration of their memory, to focus on the good instead of wallowing in the sadness of their passing.

Asking The Sorcerer Supreme and the people under his wing for permission should have been daunting, their people had been isolationist for centuries, but they agreed unanimously. Over the past many months they had the two innate magic users in their halls and their cold distrust of outsiders had melted away. 

It was no surprise that the ever polite and kind Wanda warmed the hearts of the old men of the Sanctum, she had been an outsider her entire life due to her powers and was always good to not get under foot. She knew the value of the trust placed in her to even be allowed in the secretive sect, and she was always quick to show her gratitude in the form of compliments and most importantly home made meals from her mother land.

The sorcerers never stood a chance.

It took longer for them to accept Quentin within their ranks as by his very nature he did not fit in. He didn't understand how this world worked, didn't have any basis of knowledge to build upon. Often it was commented it was like having a baby fresh from the hospital home and trying to teach it calculus. 

Not that Quentin was a stupid man, but not having the basics of even the language of phrases, slang, and how the world works was troublesome. He spent long nights with his phone looking up things that were beyond his understanding with the help of Friday. There was just so much to cover it was more than a little overwhelming. Political systems, economics, war, racism, gender equality, and the hardest one to comprehend:

Religion.

There were just so many different ones on the planet, all with their own beliefs and governing rules. On Gaea there was just one, and there was no contention if it was the "true" religion as there was tangible proof of her presence in the form of great acts by her Champions. 

How lucky were his people to be born into a world where the most basic questions of life were already answered? Here there is unrest and countless wars waged over it. It brings great sadness to his heart to see the death toll of not knowing has wrought here. 

Even now in an age of information and Gods walking the streets they still fight and kill one another over which one is right and true. Even the religions that preach love and acceptance of all are no exception to the violence. Quentin places a hand over his heart thanking Gaea for sparing their world of this tragedy.

Over time as he learns more and makes less missteps when speaking with the reclusive sorcerers of the Sanctum. They begin to accept him little by little. Sort of like a parent accepts an over eager dog, he means well and just wants to be the best he can be. 

The Archmage is beyond fascinated with the magic of this world, so different from his own, and not limited to just one person. Nearly anyone with the right mind and heart could study and become a sorcerer. This place doubles as a school for magic. A school! He often shakes his head in wonder at that.

Wanda, too shares his amazement of an entire school devoted to magic alone. Unlike him, who had at least the teachings of the past Archmages to study and the warmth of Gaea to guide him, she had nothing but her own mind and heart. 

They were the best students that a teacher could hope to have. So enthusiastic and attentive whenever they were given a lesson. It had been too long since the last time they had a student so enthused in their presence, not since Stephen Strange himself. It helped breathe new life and hope into the sect still recovering from both the Snap and the schism of Baron Mordo splitting off and taking followers with him as he disagreed with the teaching and training of new sorcerers.

A celebration of their two best students' accomplishments and a display of magical prowess seemed like just the thing they needed. While the two innate magic users would be the main show many of the sorcerers volunteered to assist in making it a hit. For once, after a long, long time of only using magics for a purpose, for war, or protection they revisited the spells of their magical youth designed for merry making and practice. 

Two weeks before the planned show the normally quiet calm atmosphere of the Sanctum is gone and replaced with an air of excitement and festivity as they practice and prepare. Drab vestments are exchanged for brightly colored robes of every color in the spectrum, faces remember how to smile and the hallways often echo with joyful laughter.

Invites are sent out to Avengers, friends, and anyone who would wish to join in the festivities. Not one person invited turns down what could very well be a once in a lifetime honor. Guests arrive early and in style, be that by Quinjet, Dragon fliers, enmass via sling rings, or Iron Man suits.

Drinks and food are plentiful and the seating magical in nature with so many guests attending. Drones fill the air in designated areas to film the occasion for the world, a celebration of life and overcoming hardship. There was much debate on whether or not to keep the celebration to Avengers and their like, but it was quickly decided that with the state of shock of the world, all that its people had gone through that it would be cruel to hide their merry making. As much as the heroes needed festivities the whole world, every last man, woman, and child needed it just as much.

The Snap and subsequent Blip as they are calling it on the news had left the world in turmoil. Just as the world had begun to accept half its people just being gone they were returned. The shock and subsequent fallout of choices made when all hope was lost has been hard on everyone. 

The decision made a press release was announced and set up with the ever lovely Mrs. Potts organizing the entire thing. Though she may not have ever wanted to be a hero and only did what she had to do when everything was on the line she was one. Beyond that she has been the driving force in keeping the peace between heroes and the people for over a decade. Not an easy feat at times with the human mistakes the heroes have made over the years, but none could say anyone could have done a better job of it.

Ten minutes before it is set to begin and the excitement is palatable. Wanda's nerves run high, she had been public enemy number one for many years after the Sokovia tragedy, and had to live in hiding for much of it. This will be her first public appearance since then and she is worried.

She paces back and forth in the secluded halls rethinking her decision to let this be public, so afraid of how the people will react. Pepper finds her there and takes her shaking hands within her own.

"You'll do great, everyone will love you I promise." She says giving Wanda's hands a reassuring squeeze.

"Really? Are you sure? Even after-"

"Yes I'm sure." Pepper interrupts with a firm voice making Wanda look up to met her eyes. "We've done the research and polls and you were forgiven long ago, there has been too much hurt in the world for people to still hold that one mistake against you." 

Wanda pulls Pepper in for a long hug needing to have heard those words. 

"Well if it isn't my two favorite smoking hot redheads!" Tony announces loudly as he walks up to the pair of women. "Oh no don't stop hugging on account of me, I'm more than happy to watch." That, of course, earns him a slap on the arm from his wife.

Wanda lets out a laugh as the tension bleeds out of her. Things were tense between her and Stark after the whole Civil War disaster but after the Snap they had slowly relearned how to be friends, in no small part to their shared grief over the loss of Vision. She shakes her head, she had almost let herself forget that all her friends, all those who care about her are here to support her. No matter the fall out that may or may not come to be from this, she'll have that and that is more than enough for her.

Quentin is the next to seek her out dressed in his suit, unlike the rest of the performers who had chosen to wear bright and ornate clothing different from their norm he had instead chosen to wear his suit. It certainly was flashy and ornate enough to fit in at the least, and it was what he felt most comfortable in and that was the deciding factor. This would be his first public appearance on this world beyond that of hearsay and blurry paparazzi photos of a mysterious man seen with high level Avengers while traveling between Avengers headquarters and the Sanctum.

There was much gossip about who he was, could he be the possibly fabled man who arrived a minute to midnight to save the day? Was he another Avenger in training, or perhaps one of those strange sorcerers who brought in armies to do battle with Thanos? As of yet Pepper, and the Avengers as a whole behind her have refused to comment. They thought it better to wait until Quentin was ready and could make the choice to reveal as little or as much as he chose.

In the style that Tony Stark could truly appreciate the man had chosen a dramatic reveal. If Iron Man were being honest, he's a little jealous that Quentin's reveal might outshine even his own, in theatrics anyway. What a show boat, it's no wonder Tony likes him. Well, that and the well groomed facial hair.

Pepper gives Wanda one last hug before all but dragging Tony away to give the pair of performers some space and privacy before their show. Pepper gives them one last reassuring smile before closing the door quietly behind her. Quentin takes Wanda hand within his own and bends down to place a kiss on the back of her hand.

"May I have this dance?" He asks voice like warm honey. The little girl in Wanda giggles and blushes as if it were Prince Charming himself asking her to dance. Fitting since tonight will truly be magical in all senses of the word. She nods in acceptance and they move to their positions to wait for their cue.

Outside the show is just beginning. Sorcerers of all ages and walks of life line up forming a rainbow of color with their robes. There is a hush in the crowd as they wait for the show to start. A sparking gold portal opens up in front of the middle of the rainbow and out flies The Sorcerer Supreme in all his glory, cape fluttering behind him.

"Welcome to the first annual, yes we plan to do this again, celebration of life and overcoming hardship." His deep voice carries over the crowd. "Long the world has been trapped into only seeing what we have all lost, but tonight, if only for one night let us take you on a mystical journey celebrating what have regained and the possibilities the future may yet hold."

There is a moment of silence as he lets the crowd digest his words before he signals the start of the show by flying up, up, up into the sky chased by a rainbow of colors shot from from the outstretched hands of his sorcerers. He disappears through another gold portal with the streams of color chasing him. Portals open over the crowd and every color of rose petals falls down gently over the crowd dissipating into colored smoke when touched.

While the crowd is looking around themselves in amazement the sorcerers cast another spell that has butterflies with glittering wings fluttering out of the smoke dancing in the air around everyone's heads. The faint sound of music filters through the air growing steadily louder with every flutter of butterfly wings.

Morgan Stark is giggling and dancing around with the butterflies much to her parents; enjoyment. Soon no face is able to hold a stoic expression as the merriment is infectious. Many of these people had suffered greatly and could probably not remember the last time they openly laughed in joy.

The colors of the butterflies slowly shifts to either red or green and they flutter up out of reach much to Morgan's disappointment, but then they join together high in the sky forming one giant butterfly half green, half red. It flies up into the sky before rushing down at the stage where the sorcerers once were but are now nowhere to be seen. 

It dives into the stage at great speed and busts apart, but when the smoke clears there stands Wanda and Quentin. The music tempo changes to that of a slow ballet as the two twirl and spin around one another to the beat. At first there is no sign of magic from either of them until they slowly start rising up above the stage dancing in the air. Green light swirls around Quentin's feet, and red around Wanda's.

Quentin reaches out a glowing hand catching Wanda's within his own and a burst of red and green smoke explodes out from where they touch. Quentin twirls Wanda in mid air and the ring of their magics expands around like a great disc before breaking apart as they do.

Wanda sways and dances around Quentin as he gives chase in step. The smoke of their magic slowly gives form two twin Chinese dragons that chase one another alongside their masters. Wanda flies up higher and higher as her red magic grows brighter and larger, but Quentin is close on her heels with his own Emerald dragon of smoke and light.

The dragons and their dancers flit about the sky playfully for several minutes until Quentin finally catches her around the waist lifting her up and bringing her in close. The dragons above them flow into one another forming a giant golden dragon that leaves streams of glittery dust in its wake.

The great dragon opens it's mouth swallowing its dancers whole eliciting gasps from some of the more moved in the audience. It is then that the sorcerers of the Sanctum make their reappearance. Dozens of golden portals open up around the dragon and out steps brightly robed figures who reach for one another forming a circle with their hands around the great dragon.

Deep baritone rings out as they chant in a dialect long lost to the modern world. They sing to the beast in harmony, their words are unintelligible to the crowd but the emotion in their voices leaves no room for doubt that this is a chant of praise. The dragon's small wings spread wide letting glittering dust fall upon the sorcerers. As the dust lands atop their heads and shoulders the golden glow spreads around them like an aura.

Their chant grows in volume that seems to feed into the dragon as it grows once more in size until it almost touches the ring of sorcerers surrounding it, but then the portals reopen and in unison they let go and fall backwards into the portals and out of sight. The dragon rears up with an open mouth as if taking a large breath before it throws its head back down to shoot not hot billows of fire but golden smoke into the crowd of people.

Like the sorcerers those who are touched by the dust gain a glowing aura of golden light and with it a connection to the dancers and then each other through their magic. A sense of joy, love, and hope feels everyone's chest. Surprised gasps go through the crowd at the unexpected turn of events.

People turn to one another and look in awe and wonder when they can feel the person next to them. Their life force has been interwoven so that they all can share this, share everything if for but a minute before the glow fades and the spell ends. Grown men openly weep and hug one another having felt the love and affection their fellows have for them that was never given words.

It is the gift of Gaea, though they are not of her, with the combined powers of Wanda and Quentin they were able to give the people of Earth a brief taste of connection with one another. The people of this planet are so fearful of being hurt that it is few and far between to see those who share their love and affection for those close to them openly and as such many suffer alone not saying a word.

The golden dragon fades as the power of Gaea's gift wanes and the two dancers reappear pressed closely together as they sway as if at a school dance as they float back down to the stage. The crowd is in total shock of what has transpired, of the gift they were given even if it was all too brief. 

None is brave to break the silence that falls upon them, that is until Thor rushes the stage and picks them both up in his arms and spins them around as if they weigh nothing. His booming laughter breaks the spell and the crowd explodes in clapping and applause. Thor wasn't part of the plan, but sometimes things turn out better than you could ever plan for. Fitting for what they are celebrating after all.

Thor turns to kiss Wanda on her cheek loudly and then turns back to do the same to Quentin. Wanda and him share a look before returning the favor as one much to the God of Thunder's delight. His booming laughter could very well be heard for miles and no one would have it any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all don't mind that I have spend so much time with quote on quote side characters. I love all the Avengers and they deserve some TLC IMO so they getting it!


	10. Hello World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quentin introduces himself to the world

They wait two days after the magical show before holding a short press conference, giving the world time to enjoy the celebration and, as Pepper puts it, to stoke flames of interest and deepen the mystery. God does Tony love that woman for indulging in his taste for dramatics. They hold the press conference at the Avenger's headquarters and invite select news outlets known for playing well with the Avengers.

"You ready to put yourself out there? Cause it is way past the point of no return and I've already proposed to Pepper on national television so I'm fresh out of get out of jail free cards." Tony pauses as if in thought, "Well I could announce my permanent, no take backs, retirement from the hero gig, but I was saving that for something special."

Quentin laughs and shakes his head.

"No, I'm ready. It'll be good to properly greet the people of this world." Tony hums thoughtfully before nodding.

"No stage fright? The press can be like sharks, but instead of smelling a drop of blood in the ocean, can sense even a hint of scandal and descend upon you in seconds."

"This isn't my first, how did you put it? Rodeo?" Quentin says with a smile. "I've been a figure head on my world since the day I was born." Tony mutters something like 'you and me both' under his breath. "I think I can handle it."

"Okay, good. Great. Let's get this shit show started!" Tony says clapping his hands and walking out on the stage to the sounds of flashing cameras. He holds his hands up and does a few bows to the applause of the crowd before stepping up to the podium. He waits a few seconds for the sound to die down before speaking.

"Welcome everyone, feels like years since we last had one of these get togethers." The crowd laughs. "I know we weren't always your favorites, and frankly? We kinda of deserved that, BUT I like to think in our golden years we've learned a few things and are better for it. We had our rebellious teenage phase but we're past that now. 

"Heroes have been a big part of this world for the last decade, it seems every time you blink a new one pops up to try and help out our overburdened police force. Not that they aren't wonderful people who do amazing things, we're just part time helpers who do this side gig for fun. They fight the good fight to protect and keep us safe every day and deserve more love and recognition than our not so little band of heroes.

"Never forget that. Without the good regular Joes of this world society would have fallen apart long ago, so go out and thank your local cop, your fireman, your over worked and frankly underpaid nurses. They are the real MVPS. Especially the nurses who have had to put up with my stubborn ass always trying to get out of bed rest.

"Though it physically pains me to say this next part, the wizards, can you believe it wizards?! A whole group of them like Harry Potter role-players who never grew up? Anyway, they set up that show for the world as a celebration of everything we've all had to survive and overcome. We lost many good people to the mad titan, had to suffer through our new lives accepting their loss, but somehow we made it.

"No we didn't just make it, we thrived and despite all odds stacked against us, my favorite kinds of odds, we kicked his ass! We got out people back, our lives back. The world will be different, already is different for those of us who survived and those who were brought back and we have to accept that. Change is scary, I know that better than most, sometimes you roll snake eyes and have to go through the fire and flame and just hope you make it out the other side. 

"But that doesn't mean it can't be better. Over the last decade we've seen changes no one could have dreamed up and while yes we've had our rough patches and more than our share of loss there is so much progress that wouldn't have been possible otherwise. The leaps and bounds medical technology and quality of life would not have been possible without all the hardships that forced us as a world to put aside petty differences and work together.

"Just how if I hadn't been in that cave I would have never become Iron Man, without the Snap we never would have finally achieved world peace. All of us were touched by what that purple ballsack faced asshole did, but we managed to do the impossible and get back at least a portion of what we lost. Will we ever be the same? No. But that isn't always a bad thing. For better or worse our universe is changing and we must change along with it."

Tony pauses to let them digest and get the full force of his speech(not because he's dramatic, promise) before looking off stage where Quentin stands ready. 

"You've all heard me a million times, but I'm not why everyone got dressed in their good clothes this morning." He says with a wink earning a few giggles from the female reporters. "Speaking of universes I'm out here to introduce the man of mystery himself. There have been lots of rumors going around about him and he's here to put some to rest and confirm others. Without further ado I'd like you all very much to meet the man who saved my life, Quentin Beck."

Quentin steps onto the stage to cheers from the crowd, he waves with a big smile. Tony steps up to him shaking his hand and whispering 'go get um tiger' in his ear before bowing out off the stage. Quentin walks up to the podium and has to wait a moment or two for the sound to die down before speaking.

"Hello, my name is Quentin Beck, but a lot of you know me as Mysterio, as I was dubbed from news outlets. Tony told me brand is important, but I like the name you have given to me. Who doesn't like being a little mysterious?" He says with a little laugh. "But only a little mysterious, that's why I am here today to introduce myself after all."

Quentin shuffles through the cue cards so helpfully supplied by Pepper while he steels himself, it has been years since he had to do any sort of public speaking. He had no intention to read from the cards, much to Tony's delight when he had told him in private, but it helped to have something in his hands while he spoke.

"So I guess I should start with who I am, where I'm from, how I got here, and why I'm here. I am from another universe, one that suffered a total cataclysm were only I and Gaea, the goddess of my world, were spared. I am her champion, she welded power in this world through me by granting me her power. It is not too different from the magics of this universe. After the cataclysm I spent many years bringing back life on my world when one fateful day we felt a burst of power and went to investigate.

"That day was the battle of the gauntlet, as it has been called, and there shimmering above the sands was a golden portal to this universe. We saw a great war being waged and felt the power of the infinity stones, the same stones that had brought ruin to our world. As Gaea was the All Mother, giver of life, she felt it our duty to assist. To try and help prevent the disaster that took all that ever was away from us from happening here.

"When we stepped through we witnessed the great heroes of this universe giving their all fighting the mighty forces of Thanos that sought to end everything. In our heart we knew and understood the siren song of life fighting to live and we answered its call even as Gaea herself knew what the call would mean for her."

Quentin stops to catch his breath that had gone a little shaky. It will never not hurt to think of that time, though with each telling it will hurt less, the pain will always be there.

"Captain Marvel, and dare I say does she live up to that name when surrounded by brilliant light and power radiating from her very being, had the gauntlet and for a moment it seemed as if she would prevail but alas it was not meant to be. We knew we had to act, and we used the brief moment the mad titan had in celebration after striking her with one of the stones and we rushed him. 

"It took everything we had just to get it from his grasp and then when we used it took the last piece of my world with it. Gaea sacrificed herself, as any mother would do for her children, for any child."

He goes silent for a moment gathering himself, the crowd waits patiently hanging on his every word. This is the first time there has been a first hand account of the battle after all. He takes a deep breath hand on his heart where her warmth should have been but never would be again before continuing.

"After that the kind people of this world nursed me back to health. The Avengers and the Sorcerers of the Sanctum, if it were not for them I would not have made it and they have my eternal gratitude. As do all the people of this world. My world is lost to me but I hope to make this world my new home. 

"I have spent the last few months recovering and learning about my new home, there is much I do not know, much that leaves me puzzled but I hope to learn more. To help the people here as I helped those on my world if you would wish it. I lost everything, everyone and thought myself destined to wander the wastes of my world never again to see another face but fate was merciful to grant me this second chance. I will not waste it.

"Every life is precious and every moment to be treasured. My purpose is to spread that to all that would hear it, to help all those who I am able, and to learn your ways so that I can truly make this my home.

"I am told that it is normal to take questions now, so any questions?"

Every single hand flies up surprising Quentin, he selects one woman at random who asks her question.

"Does that mean you are joining the Avengers or since you use magic you'll be under Dr. Stephen Strange's leadership with the other wizards?"

"A very good question, and while I would be greatly honored to join the ranks of either group whose purpose is to protect this world and the people on it I have to decline both. I am but a newborn child to the ways of this world and the politics involved with either group, I wouldn't want to step on anyone's toes, so to speak, and get either of them in trouble.

"So for now I'll be what Tony called, freelance? I will of course divert to either groups' decisions on anything I do as they would know better than I would, but I am not here to fight, or to keep the peace I, as of yet, do not understand fully. I instead will be solely focused on humanitarian acts that have no grey area to debate. That is what I did in my own world, helped save people after or during natural disasters, and offered aid to those in need."

Quentin calls on the next reporter.

"Does that mean if there was another Avenger's level event you would not help?"

"Of course not. I would be first in line to fight the likes of Thanos if there was a need. It is simply difficult for someone in my position, as foreign as you can possibly get, to be involved in wars or fighting between groups when I cannot possibly hope to judge who is in the 'right' and who is in the 'wrong'. I pray that there is never a need for me to fight, but if there is I stand with The Avengers, The Sanctum, and the people of Earth."

He calls next on a balding man wearing a hat and a mustache to ask.

"How do you feel about the statement you set when you did the show with Wanda Maximoff, a known terrorist that through her actions caused the deaths of hundreds of innocents and millions of dollars in property damage?"

Tony leaps back on the stage and shoos the reporter out of the press conference. 

"Who let the Daily Bugle hate mongers in here? Sorry everyone, seems some trash was missed by the cleaning crew. We'll get that cleaned up and taken out. Okay so first of all? I thought we moved passed this? We've all made mistakes, me more than most but what are mistakes but something to learn from? I've fucked up and with each fuck up I learn and become a better person. But not so good I won't drop F bombs on national television, sorry Pep. 

"Second of all? Without her we would have lost. Full stop. That woman is a power house, and while yes she had poor control that cost the lives of innocent men and women she's learned control. She should not have had to learn that lesson the hard way and I can tell you for a fact that not a day goes by where she doesn't feel regret and sadness over those who died because of her mistake, but that's on the rest of us as much as her. We knew her control over her powers was poor at best, but we sent her out anyway, never even called up the wizards for someone on one training. That's on me and Cap as team leaders.

"Flay the both of us for that, not her. We deserve it, she doesn't. All she wanted to do was save Capsickle's life, not hurt anyone. I don't want this to turn into a literal witch hunt so how about we call it a day and if you're very lucky maybe the second most handsome man in the room will do another one of these shindigs in the future if you behave. Toodles."

There is an uproar of shouted questions and many angry words yelled at the Daily Bugle reporter for having ruined and cut short the press conference. Tony turns to Quentin when they were off stage.

"I think that went well." He turns back to see Pepper's angry face approaching rapidly. "Crap. Time to listen to lecture 35 of why it's inappropriate to use foul language on national t.v. and why it is entirely my fault Morgan gets calls home from school for language. Which to be fair, it is."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter we finally giving Spidey some screen time yeah boiii


	11. Under The Moonlight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter volunteers to be Quentin's escort when he goes out as Mysterio as his 'Avenger handler' while he learns the about the world from being in it instead of from a screen in his room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had a productive day and sat down to write 2.5 chapters, here is the second one woop woop!

Over the coming weeks after introducing himself to the world Quentin is stopped on the street every time he goes out. Before this there was never a clear picture of him, but now the whole world knows his face. It was a little daunting and overwhelming at times, but he never went out alone so whenever it would get too much for him someone would step in to give him room to breathe.

School was out for the summer, not that the last two months of school were anything besides a complete disaster for Peter and everyone else what with half the school, students and teachers alike, reappearing. Of all the Avengers he had the most free time and often he was the one escorting Quentin around as he slowly explored his new home, and met with its people.

If Peter were to be completely honest he was over the moon to get to be the one to show the world to Quentin. He doubts anyone else would be as excited to show off all the cool places to the man. Dressed as Spider-Man he would swing from building to building with Quentin flying hot on his heels as he showed him around Queens. Together they would do random acts of kindness like walking old women across the street and getting cats out of trees.

If he were with anyone other than Quentin he would have felt shame or shyness about how he chose to use his powers to help people, but Quentin was right alongside him every step of the way. He got just as much enjoyment out of doing small deeds to help people as Peter did. It felt like something they were both made to do.

Sure it was great to do the big things like fight aliens and stuff, and it needed doing but Peter is much happier to just be the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. He grew up poor and down on his luck and knows how good one small act of kindness can be, how much it can mean to just have someone lend an ear to your problems. 

When they aren't stopping small time crime and fetching angry cats from trees they spend a lot of time sitting and talking on the top of buildings. It's sort of become their thing. Go out for patrols then eat dinner together under the moonlight and talk the night away. 

Despite being a decade older than him Quentin never talks down to him, nor belittles any of the struggles Peter chooses to vent about. He listens attentively and soaks up what little advice Peter can give. Before this only Ned was really interested in being his friend, not even Tony would give him this kind of attention.

Which isn't saying that Tony isn't better now, Tony is great! It seems every other weekend Tony is inviting him up to his home to play in the workshop or baby sit Morgan. Though he hasn't said it outright, Peter is sure that Tony looks at him like his kid. His super hearing has overheard too many soft spoken words between Pepper and Tony to think otherwise.

His heart twists whenever he catches hushed conversations about setting him up for college, and putting him in the will. He hasn't had a father figure since Ben, almost didn't cause of Thanos, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't want it with everything inside of him. A part of him is scared that it's going to be taken away from him again so he soaks up every second of time he gets with Tony, Pepper, and Morgan.

They are his family, Aunt May said so. Unsurprisingly she encourages Peter to spend time with them, never jealous that they are going to 'steal' him away, instead she is overjoyed that he has a bigger support group. She raised the only child on her own and always felt sad for him, almost no friends and no male figures to look up to.

But it's okay now cause he's an Avenger! He has all those people on his side, and he can even talk to them about the daily struggle of having powers and the responsibility that goes along with it. Unfortunately his age makes them treat him different, like they need to coddle him as if he were a small child. They mean well. They really do.

It's just....It's just that they call him 'kid' and talk down to him as if he's just a baby, not a few months from 18 and being an adult. Not as if the stuff he's had to go through hasn't made him grow up really fast.

Everyone but Quentin. Maybe that's why he's grown so close with the man, or maybe its the shared nature of being outsiders even in a group of outsiders. Peter can't even begin to imagine how hard it would be to have your entire universe wiped away. 

Just. Damn.

So he goes out of his way to include Quentin, to talk to him like he would Ned, as if he were a friend. Not that he isn't the kind of guy anyone would want to be friends with even without his kick ass magical powers though!

The guy is just so kind and good! He'll listen to a lonely old lady ramble for 20 minutes and the smile won't fade from his face, he won't even try to back away slowly. He treats every person he meets like they matter. Really matter. Like he has all the time in the world to listen to someone's struggles.

It's not like the guy doesn't have his own problems but he is always pushing them aside to help someone else out with theirs. Something May is always getting on Peter's case for, but he can't help it. He knows it's not the best way to deal with things, but it's so much easier to help someone else rather than asking for help yourself.

Peter knows Quentin is going through a lot, he catches him staring off at the city lights with a sad look on his face sometimes when there is a natural lull in their conversations. At first he was too scared to ask, afraid of stepping on a sensitive subject but one night with his courage high he manages it.

"What are you thinking about?' He asks softly, attempting to sound nonchalant and failing miserably as his awkward self always does. Without turning his head Quentin lets out a tiny huff of a breath and answers.

"I was thinking about how beautiful the city looks and how Gaea would have loved to see it. To meet all the different and wonderful people of this world." He turns to Peter with a sad smile. "She would have loved it, loved everyone and every creature here. Sorry to have gotten melancholy on you."

Peter throws up his hands and shakes his head frantically.

"NO! I mean no, don't be sorry. It's okay to be sad sometimes, I get sad too when I think about Ben and how he should have been in the empty chair next to May when I graduated. He always wanted to see me graduate and get into a good school. But I just have to tell myself that he would want me to be happy and enjoy it ya know? Like it's okay to be sad but there is a happiness to it too, I guess is what I'm saying.

"If you're asking me, which you totally aren't, I think Gaea would be happy to know that you are here enjoying it for the both of you. I don't really know how religion is supposed to work with someone who had a literal Goddess living inside them, but here we like to think that those we lost live on within us. Or- or that they are watching over us. So when we wish they were here? It's kinda like they are, in a way."

Peter goes quiet after letting that out, unsure if what he said will be taken well. Quentin looks at him thoughtfully for a moment before his sad smile turns a little more real.

"I like you Peter, you're a good kid and Gaea? She would have loved you. Had you been born in my world there isn't a single doubt in my mind she would have chosen you as a Champion. You've got a good heart and you aren't afraid to share it with the world."

Peter's face goes red at the unexpected compliment and he waves a hand in denial.

"No really, you're amazing. Not just the Amazing Spider-Man, but the Amazing Peter Parker. Friend of old ladies and savior of cats!" Quentin jokes deepening Peter's blush even more before taking Peter's hands within his own with an intent look. "You saved me Peter. Every day you save me a little more. I don't know if I would be adjusting so well if it were not for you. Every night you could leave once the patrol is over, but instead you stay up with me late into the night just talking and listening. Just being here so I won't feel lonely. That's what it means to be a hero, and you are a real hero to me everyday Peter. Thank you."

Peter's heart flutters in his chest, no one has ever said something like this to him before. He knows he makes a difference, that's why he does what he does after all, but to have someone tell him to his face and mean every word? It leaves him speechless.

Literally speechless, for probably an awkwardly long amount of time, but he doesn't know what, if anything he can say to that. He does the only thing he can think of which is to wrap the larger man in a hug perhaps a bit too excitedly as it tips them both over backwards onto the roof top. 

Quentin lets out a surprised huff of laughter as the wind gets knocked out of him and Peter joins in before rolling over onto his back next to Quentin. They lie next to each other, their hands brushing as they watch the stars shining above them in peaceful silence for an unknown amount of time simply enjoying each other's company before Peter's alarm goes off.

It startles them as they both were lost in thought, it takes a few seconds before Peter realizes it's the alarm signaling the end to their night. Although he will be 18 in a few short months May is just as strict as ever about his curfew ever since learning of his nightly patrols. 'A growing boy needs his rest' She always says when he argues about it, but he knows she worries about him and just wants to know he'll be home safe every night.

Peter sits up and digs through his backpack to shut off the blaring alarm. Once it's silenced he turns back to see Quentin still laying there watching him and for once, just this once, he really wants to break his promise to Aunt May and stay out a little longer. It feels weird to leave the man after he all but confessed to being lonely and needing Peter, and it's not like Peter doesn't look forward to these nights almost as much as the other man does.

Ned is great, he is, and will always be his best friend, but there are some things Peter just can't talk to him about. He just wouldn't understand. But with Quentin? Peter feels like he could tell the man anything and everything. It's almost scary how much Peter wants to confide in him.

Quentin must see the indecision in Peter's eyes because he sits up and stretches letting out a yawn reminding Peter of the time.

"Looks like it's past time we got you home and for this old man to get to bed."

"You're not old. Well you are. Older than me I mean, but not by like a lot or anything? You still look good, like really good. Not that-I mean." Peter trips over his words. "You're not an old man is what I mean to say."

Quentin lets out a little chuckle. 

"Well in that case this good looking older man needs to get his beauty sleep so he can maintain his heartthrob status."

"I regret teaching you that word." Peter says covering his face with his hands much to the delight of the older man. 

"Did I use it wrong again? I'm still trying to get used to using hip lingo but it's hard fam." It physically pains Peter to hear that sentence.

"Stop. Please. Just stop."

"Okay, okay." Quentin agrees with a smirk, he knows how to use that slang right, but he recently learned the art of trolling from Tony and has taken a liking to it. At least it is just Quentin doing it right now, one time both him and Tony had a full 10 minute conversation in front of Peter while grossly misusing slang on purpose.

Peter may or may not have webbed both their mouths shut after they refused to stop. Pepper may have cheered if such a thing did occur, which no one is saying it did. Because they wouldn't want a hypothetical repeat treat of a mouth full of webbing. 

The older man's trolling does it's job and spoils the strangely intense mood between them and so Peter puts his mask back on and waves goodbye to Quentin before swinging his way home. 

He climbs in through his bedroom window and flips the light on, his signal to May that he's home safe and sound. His curfew is 1 a.m. which is when Aunt May goes to sleep, he knows from experience that she'll stay up and wait for him, unable to sleep if he's late so he is always sure to let her know he's home with his bedroom light. 

He strips out of his suit and puts fresh boxers on for bed and turns the light back off but doesn't sleep. He lies awake in bed for some time just thinking about Quentin. About how he can help him more, outside of their patrols and being super heroes when it comes to him that they could hang out not as Mysterio and Spider-Man but as Quentin and Peter! 

It's so simple he's amazed he hasn't thought of it before. He spends the rest of the night daydreaming about what they could do together, what places he can show him as Peter that Spider-Man could never show him until he falls into a peaceful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I've spent 100 times the words of Quentin with everyone BUT the tagged ship....but now we're finally getting somewhere...slowly...oh so slowly but we'll get there! 
> 
> Might be a bit wonky for a little bit, sorry for that, it'll get better? Supposed to be awkward between them for an amount of time before it gets better, hope it's not too bad to read at least. :x


	12. It's Peter and Quentin, not Spider-Man and Mysterio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Quentin shed their responsibilities as heroes for a day as they share more of their personal lives with one another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this turned into a monster haha. This one chapter is a quarter of the length of the entire fic written so far, guess it's go big or go home with their screen time :D

The next day when Peter brings up his great idea for them to hang out as Peter and Quentin instead of Mysterio and Spider-Man Quentin stares at him in total confusion for a solid 10 seconds until Peter realizes the man doesn't really understand secret identities. 

"Okay so you know how you can't escort me home after patrols cause then people would figure out I'm Spider-Man pretty quick?" Quentin nods, "Well if you came to my house as Quentin, without the armor and like I don't know, wearing sunglasses and a hat? Well, no one would look twice. I mean no one knows me, and people don't look too closely at other people cause they got enough to worry about so like we could totally hang out and no one would even know!" Peter exclaims excitedly. 

"So, just to be clear, what you are saying is that we could go out as regular people without worrying about being followed by the press just by wearing some fashion accessories?"

"Yeah man! It'll be easy you'll see! Cap and Tony do it all the time and they are like stupid famous. I mean if they can get away with it so can you!" 

"I trust you." Quentin says following Peter as he leads the way to what he's dubbed the 'closet of disguises' which is a staple of any place Tony stays and as such is fully stocked in all Avenger bases and hideaways for whenever someone needs to disappear quickly. 

Peter has Quentin try on a few different pairs of sunglasses until he finds ones that fit his face and hides the bright blue of his eyes. Next he tries on a variety of baseball hats before settling on a plain black one that he likes. 

"Umm you do have other clothes than that suit right?" Peter asks awkwardly having not ever seen him out of it except from when he was on what could have been his deathbed. 

Quentin shakes his head and looks down at the floor in embarrassment. Crap. Way to go Parker, he mentally berates himself. Way to be sensitive and just make assumptions. While Peter is mentally figuring out how to best remove his foot from his mouth Quentin breaks and looks back up with a wicked smile.

"Of course I have clothes Peter! I've been staying with Tony of all people, he practically made me get sized for a three piece suit by our second conversation."

"Not cool man." Peter grumbles with no heat as Quentin slaps him on the back in mirth. 

"You can help me pick out a good outfit though. If you don't mind. I don't really know what regular people wear, and Tony either wears the flashiest thing possible or something so ratty and full of holes its a wonder Pepper doesn't make him throw it out."

"Yeah sure, I could do that. I'm not like a fashion guru or anything. But like, I know how to dress to not stand out. Like not on purpose but accidentally ya know? Anyway um yeah I can help." Christ Parker, if he wasn't like this before he was bit by a radioactive spider he would swear up and down his awkwardness was a super power, but Quentin doesn't even bat an eye. Probably because he's so used to it by now that he doesn't notice, or if he does he's nice enough to never mention it. Either way Peter is eternally grateful.

Quentin leads him to the room they gave him when he first woke up after the battle. Peter has never seen the man's room before, hardly been in anyone's room who wasn't family or Ned. Butterflies flutter in his stomach as he suddenly becomes nervous, why is he even nervous? What does he have to be nervous about? It's just a room, even though he has a room here he's rarely ever had a reason to use it.

Maybe it's different because Quentin actually lives in this room since graduating from not-Hogwarts. Heh, it still gives Peter the giggles to think of it like that from time to time. So grown up, no wonder everyone treats you like a kid. Lost in thought Peter walks into Quentin's back as he's opening up the door.

"Sorry" He mumbles face heated, normally his spidey sense, as he likes to call it, prevents him from doing things like this but not this time. Probably cause there is no danger here, one of the safest places on the planet with a powerful magic user. Yeah that's probably it. Quentin doesn't comment on Peter's misstep and instead holds open the door for Peter to walk in.

"Welcome to my home, as sparse and far away from home-y as a home can get through." Quentin says rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. Apparently Peter isn't the only one feeling awkward about the going into someone's room thing. "I don't really have anything besides clothes, a bed, and assorted electronics that Tony has gifted to me so sorry that it's so. . ." He trials off waving his hand in a gesture to the all but barren rooms.

Peter steps inside and he immediately gets what Quentin meant by that. It doesn't look like anyone lives here at all. The walls are barren, no pictures, no posters. There is a perfectly made bed, a night stand with a lamp and a phone charger pulled into the wall.

That's it.

Nothing else.

It makes Peter sad to see it, no wonder the guy is always so happy to go on patrol with Peter, and no wonder the guy gives every person he meets his full and undivided attention. If his room looked like this, he wouldn't want to be here either. Damn man. He hadn't even thought of what it would be like. Of course the man has nothing. 

He literally just hopped into this universe with the clothes on his back and hope in his heart. Talk about coming on a boat with nothing but hope and a prayer. He's got no income, probably wouldn't even think to ask for more than what has been given to him with how self-sacrificing the guy is. 

They really dropped the ball this time, six months and not even one picture to look at? Peter knows right then and there that no one else has been into Quentin's room until now. There is no way in hell any of them would have let the man live like this if they had known. 

Peter quickly schools his expression but it's too late and he knows Quentin has seen the pity in his eyes when the other man refuses to make eye contact. 

0 for 2 Parker. But can he make a comeback and salvage this before it reaches critical levels of awkwardness resulting in the implosion and end of the world itself? He's saved the world, or at least Queens once before, he can do it again. He tells himself mind racing on ways to de-awkward the room(which pretty much goes against his very nature).

Peter drops his backpack on the side of the bed and sits down, giving it a bounce or two to try it out. The memory foam conforms to his butt and he can feel the quality even through his jeans. Can always count on Tony to buy, or make you, the best of the very best when it comes to creature comforts. 

"Very roomy." Peter is his own worst enemy, Thanos has nothing on his mouth spouting the stupidest thing possible at any given moment. "Lots of room for activities." Yes, quote a cheesy comedy he has no idea about and let the reference go over his head. "I mean, the bed is super comfortable, that's nice." 

Peter falls back onto the bed as he prays for the ultra fancy memory foam mattress to gain sentience and swallow him up so he can shut up but, no luck. It seems weird monsters only appear when it's inconvenient. Lame. The bed really is super comfortable though, maybe he'll have to find a way to hint to Tony about getting one without Aunt May catching wind. She is still a little weird about him accepting too many gifts from the multi-billionaire. 

"Oh man this bed is awesome, this is way better than a cold roof top, I'd have wanted to go home to a bed like this too if I had one." Peter says being completely honest. "I am actually jealous that Tony likes you more than me now. My room? It doesn't have a bed half this nice."

Peter hears the sound of Quentin's footfalls before the man enters his field of vision leaning over Peter as he lies on his too comfortable bed. The man offers him a hand which Peter takes actually grateful as the bed is almost too good to get out of under his own power. Quentin meets his eyes, there is still a hint of shame about his eyes but at least he's meeting Peter's eyes again.

"Thanks." Peter says as Quentin helps him back on his feet. "Right, so um, let's see what we have to work with?" Peter hedges hoping that by not mentioning it the other man will feel less bad about it. 

"Yeah that's a good idea." Quentin agrees, stepping out of Peter's space and moving to the large walk-in closet(because of course Tony would make it mandatory for all of them to have walk-ins) and opens it up revealing a surprisingly wide variety of clothes. Peter half expected it to only have fancy suits and gimmicky Avengers merch(it does, of course, have both in ample supply).

Quentin steps aside with his arm out in the (multi)universal sign for 'have at it'. Peter flips through each article of clothing slowly as he takes stock of their options. 15 T-shirts, 8 of which feature an Avenger(no way), two pairs of skinny jeans, 4 regular cut, 4 fancy suits(also no), three hoodies, one of which is surprisingly devoid of a graphic(a definite win), 10 different variations of track suits/work out clothes, and two pairs of pajama bottoms, one with Hagrid's face on it a dozen times saying 'yer a wizard' and the other with chibi Iron Man suits. Clearly Tony snuck those last two past Pepper as she might have had words about 'sensitivity' with her husband.

Peter can work with this. He grabs the plain black hoodie, three of the non-Avenger T-shirts, and all the jeans and hands them to Quentin. 

"Try on the blue shirt, the hoodie and whichever jeans are the most comfortable." Quentin is silent for a moment. "Oh, you haven't tried any of this on yet have you?" Quentin shakes his head.

"I usually just wear my under suit to bed, or my full suit when I go out." He admits, "The only things I've worn are the work out clothes. I know I should be acclimating to this world, which includes the clothing, but...but this suit" He gestures down himself, "Its basically all I have of, of Gaea and its..."

"Comforting." Peter supplies to a grateful looking Quentin. "I get that, um my favorite hoodie, the one I'm wearing now? It was what I wore the last time I saw Uncle Ben. So um don't feel bad about that, we do it here too. Besides you've seen the ratty, half destroyed stuff Tony wears when he's not going out. He's stupid rich and could buy new clothes but I'm sure there is a story behind everything he wears. So um what I'm saying is it's cool."

"Thanks Peter, its good to hear that said." He clears his throat, "Okay I'll just go change then?" He asks motioning toward his bathroom.

"Yeah I'll just wait here on your bed, but now that I know its like made of clouds or something I won't lie down so you have to rescue me again." Peter jokes as he sits down on the corner of Quentin's bed. 

"I better not come out and find you've fallen asleep." Quentin warns with a half smile as he goes into the bathroom and shuts the door behind him.

"I won't!" Peter calls out to the shut door. He sits on the end of Quentin's bed and suddenly the room feels infinitely more empty without the other man's presence. 

Is this how Quentin feels when he's home? Probably worse, he thinks. He looks around the room and all the open space, and the blank walls. This isn't a home, its more like a prison cell so devoid of any touches of personality or life. Peter bites his lip as he thinks about how he can make it better.

He had planned on just taking Quentin to his favorite sandwich shop and maybe sitting at a park while they ate. Something simple and small for his first outing as a civilian, as Quentin Beck instead of as Mysterio the hero. Now he's thinking of something else entirely. 

He pulls out his phone and is flipping through events and special places to go when the bathroom door reopens and Quentin steps out. Peter's mouth hangs open in surprise at the sight before him. 

Quentin has chosen the pair of faded black skinny jeans that hug and shows off how just how much muscle he has regained in the months he has spent working out with Thor. Time well spent. He had left the hoodie unzipped which revealed just how tight the blue shirt was on him. Clearly the work of Tony again who had slowly and painstakingly replaced all of Cap's shirts with one's two sizes too small just so he could gawk at every flexed muscle bulging and straining against his shirts.

Peter could see the appeal, it was hard to not stare when someone was in that good of shape, but it wouldn't do for staying inconspicuous. On auto pilot he stands, walks over to Quentin and zips up his hoodie until just a tiny triangle of blue is peaking out. He doesn't realize what he's doing until he's done it. 

His hands fly away as if burned and he takes a few steps back and rubs the back of his neck. Quentin's hands go up and lightly touch the zipper just as surprised by Peter's actions as Peter was. Peter coughs into his fist as his eyes dance all around the room, landing anywhere and everywhere but on Quentin.

"Um it's um" Peter clears his throat again, "It's better zipped up cause, well you know." Peter motions vaguely at Quentin, who does. Not. Comprehend. Shit, he's going to have to say it isn't he? "It's cause you're too hot, okay? People would stare, and that is like the complete opposite of what we want. Normal people don't look like you do, they'd think you were an in disguise movie star, or model at the very least."

It is Quentin's turn to blush then. It does nothing to lessen his attractiveness, if anything it amplifies it. Nope, can't have that if they go out in public and want to not get caught on their first outing. May might actually kill him if he blew his secret identity before he's even 18. 

"So just keep it zipped up, put on the sunglasses and hat and we should be good to go." Quentin puts the hat and sunglasses on and holds his arms out as if for inspection. "Pull the hoodie up over your hat like this." Peter pulls his own well worn grey hoodie over his head as an example and Quentin follows suit. "Yeah that's perfect. There is no way anyone is going to recognize you like this."

"Okay so what do you have in mind for today?" Quentin asks as he leads Peter out of his room.

"Well I really wanted to show you the best sandwich shop in Queens, like really it's the best. After that, well it's a surprise." 

"I like surprises."

Peter leads Quentin out of one of the many secret entrances leading to one of many nondescript streets in New York. They walk side by side at a comfortable pace down the sidewalk, just two of many people going from point A to point B. This is New York and no one gives them a second look, most don't give them a first look truth be told. Quentin is quiet beside him, taking in the sights and sounds you miss when flying above the city. People bump into them here and there as if they are nobody, which today? They are.

"Wow you can really feel the life in the city down here." Quentin observes, "Makes it feel more real than when I'm flying above it all. Like I'm just another cog in the machine, I had forgotten what that feels like."

Peter hums in agreement. He loves swinging high above everything, but there is just something about being down on the ground with the people. Like he belongs even if no one looks twice at him. 

"If you like that just wait til we get to the subway, then you can learn what it feels like to be a sardine packed in a can." Peter jokes as they near the subway entrance where there is the ever present crowd of people going this way and that. "Stay close to me, it gets a little...elbow-y down there." Peter warns.

He can feel the larger man move up and take position on his left rear side as if they are forming ranks. Peter smirks at how serious Quentin's face looks when he glances back at him. While it's not that bad, it's nice to feel the strength of the built man brush against him when they walk. 

They walk down the stairs and get to the turnstile and Peter hands Quentin a token before they pass through. Peter leads them from the entrance intent on heading straight for their train when he feels a large hand on his shoulder. He stops and turns to look at Quentin who is looking around the poorly lit station overcrowded with people and ripe with their smells as if it's a wonder to behold.

"Did you not have this in your world?" Peter asks, Quentin shakes his head in response not looking away from all the trains and people stuffed in so small a space.

"We shared a lot of technological advances with the people here, but underground transportation? Never once even occurred to us. The sheer scale of planning and work to not only live above the ground in tall skyscrapers but to dig underneath all that? That is marvelous." 

"You think that is cool, come check out the map! It's going to blow your socks right off!" Peter says patting the hand on his shoulder making sure the tourist from another universe follows him. They get to the map and Peter explains how all the lines are different train routes with dozens of stops on each line. Quentin listens with rapt attention, his finger tracing some of the lines.

"How do you not get lost and confused with so much?" Peter rubs the back of his neck.

"Well sometimes you do get lost, or fall asleep and miss your stop but mostly you get where you need to go. The subway is second nature to us at this point I guess. I mean foreigners and out of towners are always getting into trouble but the locals? We know it like the backs of our hands."

"The scale of this, bridging islands even?! It's mind boggling how much work had to go into this, honestly? I find it more impressive than your skyscrapers."

"Oh man, it's like you're a local already! Come on let's go catch our train and you can experience it first hand. It gets a little crazy in there sometimes though just to warn you." 

"I'm sure I can handle it." Quentin says, but he's never experienced the New York subway and the crazies that hang out on the trains. Although this isn't a night train so they aren't likely to be treated to a full band going from car to car, nor break dancers. But even just the sheer amount of people that cram themselves in should be interesting for the man from a world with less than half the population of Earth.

They line up and slowly cram themselves into the train alongside business men going to work, students on the way to school and hundreds of other people traversing the city. Once they are in the car, just as Peter expected, there is no seating room so he walks to the side of the train and grabs on to one of the hand rails. Quentin follows and holds on next to Peter, his eyes are wide as he looks around the packed train.

Peter nudges his shoulder to get his attention.

"It's gonna get real loud, real quick so just stay close and follow me when it's time to get off." Quentin nods with a serious expression stepping closer to Peter so their sides are touching so he'll know when Peter moves and can go back to staring at all the different people in the tiny car.

The first 5 stops come and go without incident until they hit a central hub and what feels like half of the city gets on the train. People push and shove into each other as they get on, Peter is used to it and thanks to his spidey sense he's been able to avoid getting any elbows for a long time now. Today though? He doesn't even need his spidey sense to prevent that when Quentin acts as a human shield for the smaller teen. 

They were close before but now with all the extra people they've moved back against the side of one of the doors. Peter is safely cushioned between the wall and Quentin's mass preventing anyone besides Quentin himself from knocking into him. Peter looks up at Quentin and offers him a crooked smile half in thanks, half as an 'I told you so'. The man gives a half smile back.

They stay like that for a few more stops until slowly the crowd dwindles down. Quentin steps back a hair to give Peter some breathing room, not that he much minded being pressed against the larger man. Might have leaned into him more than absolutely necessary, but he'll never admit it and Quentin wouldn't know. Plus it's not like they don't hug all the time, this was just a little longer and a little more closely pressed, nothing weird. 

That's what Peter tells himself anyway even as he misses the other man's warmth. Peter shakes his head banishing his strange thoughts earning a questioning look from the other man. He just shakes his head again, gives a thumbs up with his free hand, and a smile. 

Ten minutes go by before they are at their connection and Peter nudges Quentin again and signals with his head that it's time. The doors open and Peter steps off the train Quentin right behind him. He walks to a secluded corner of the station and sits down on the cold concrete, motioning Quentin to join him. The ever present anxiety from being in tight spaces slowly makes itself known now that he's out in the open again.

He stops and takes a few breaths, the subway has been hard ever sinc-since Toomes. He knows he's probably got PTSD and claustrophobia from th-the warehouse but it's been getting better. With Quentin there blocking out the other people and as a safety line it almost didn't even get to him. 

Almost.

Quentin doesn't say a word or ask while Peter catches his breath. He closes his eyes and counts to ten letting out a big breath and with it the anxiety that had built up during the train ride. He reopens his eyes and Quentin is looking at him with questions in his eyes but doesn't voice them when Peter shakes his head.

He'll tell him about Toomes and the warehouse, someday, but not today. He takes another deep breath and lets it out feeling a hundred times better. Quentin places his hand on Peter's knee giving it a gentle squeeze before taking his hand back.

"Sorry, uh, just sometimes the crowds, the people all packed together gets to me. I'm fine now we can go catch the other train now. No don't give me that look, I'm fine, really! See!" Peter says jumping up to his feet and flashing a thumbs up. Quentin's lips twitch at his antics but he just nods and stands next.

"The next train isn't so bad, Queens only has a quarter of the people New York has so the trains never get that packed. I almost never take the subway all the way to New York so that's probably why it was hard on me, not used to it ya know?"

"Well that was quite an. . .experience. Nothing like that in my world. Although I wouldn't say I enjoyed being, what did you call it? A sardine in a can? It was novel, and frankly impressive that we somehow managed to fit so many people in such a small space." Quentin comments thoughtfully. "If the other train is less crowded though, I wouldn't complain." 

They don't have to wait long for their train to arrive, the subway system runs like a greased wheel, they've had over a hundred years to perfect it after all. They step on the train and blissfully there is a smattering of seats open, none together so they would have to sit apart though. Quentin's calculating gaze sees the same but his mouth twists like he ate something sour, not liking the conclusion he's come to.

Quentin moves up behind him and gently pushes him towards an empty corner seat. Peter takes the seat and Quentin grabs onto the handrail to stand next to him giving him a look as if daring Peter to fight him on it. He knows he'd lose and so he doesn't even try and instead offers a grateful smile that gets him a wink in response. 

Okay so taking the subway with Quentin? Way, waaay better than taking it alone. He's got someone there looking out for him, instead of always being the one looking out for everyone else. It's nice to have someone else around to shoulder the responsibility.

Normally the teen would be the one giving up his seat for someone, or watching to make sure girls don't get hassled on the train. Since he got bit by that spider his whole life got turned upside down and he's had the weight of responsibility on his shoulders alone. Not that he didn't do his best before that to help out people before, but it usually ended up with him getting bullied instead of the person he was trying to help.

His enhanced senses make him hyper aware of everything that goes on around him, always on the lookout for trouble that seems to be just around the corner. It gets exhausting when he's out in crowds, too many people to watch out for, it's nice to be able to relax for a minute knowing that there is someone else who can help just as well, if not better than he could. 

The ever present tension in his shoulders slowly bleeds out and for the first time in years he simply enjoys the trip. The hum of the engine, the gentle bumps as they drive down the tracks feel like home to the kid from Queens. Time passes by amiably as the two of them are lost in thought until they arrive at their final destination. Peter stands up and they both exit the train. Peter takes a deep breath, that trip was much better than the first, and this time he doesn't need a moment to collect himself.

"Okay so Delmar's Deli is only a few blocks from here, we can grab our food and I don't know how do you feel about a mini picnic at the park?" 

"Some fresh air and nature sounds wonderful after being in a moving can for the last hour." Quentin agrees taking a deep breath himself once they are above ground.

"Okay so you're gonna love this place trust me. Delmar's place is the hidden gem of Queens. He always has the best ingredients and he uses unique spices, just you wait."

"You're making me even more hungry talking about it, even if it doesn't live up to all that you are building it up to be I'm going to eat every last bite." Quentin pats his stomach for emphasis. 

Peter doesn't doubt that for one second, he's one of the few people who give people with enhanced metabolisms a run for their money when it comes to putting food away. 

"Wait, do you have an enhanced metabolism? I never really thought about it before, always just assumed you put it away like a starving man...cause well, you kind were." Peter cringes, why doesn't he think about what he says before he says it, but Quentin doesn't seem the least bit bothered by it so he pushes on. "I mean you DID after all survive without ANY food for years, you said it was by Gaea's will and power that it was possible, but could you have gained a permanently altered metabolism from the ordeal? How does being a person infused with magic down to the cellular level affect all that?"

Quentin frowns in thought, giving Peter's random out of the blue questions serious thought.

"You know, I never really thought of that before, it is entirely possible that when Gaea fused with me after...that I was fundamentally changed." He hums thoughtfully, "All Champions have had the ability to survive extreme conditions and situations beyond that of a normal person, but never to the extremes I did. You're probably right, huh. Never thought about it, you have some of the best insights Peter. I mean it is my body and I never once thought about it, you're really something."

Peter ducks his head at the praise, he doesn't know if he'll ever get used to how easily the man offers it. 

"It's nothing really, I just think about stuff, like a lot. I mean, the universe has so much going on and if you stop to think about just one small part of it and how it really works its amazing. Tony says I'm not challenged enough in school and that's why my mind is always off daydreaming during class and outside of it."

"I think he's right, you have a brilliant mind for thinking outside of the box. If it weren't for you and your daydreaming I wouldn't even be here. You're the one who first thought of using this wondrous material in the first place." Quentin rolls up his sleeve exposing one of the Vibranium bracers that keeps him on the same frequency as this universe. 

"Well I only thought it up, the others did the really amazing part of figuring out how to make it work." Quentin replaces his sleeve hiding the bracers which would give away his identity as surely as anything would as they are unique in this entire universe to him.

"Don't belittle what you did, it was the building block that made their work possible. Being the daydreamer who comes up with fantastic ideas is just as important as the people who make it possible. Never lose that Peter, people have a bad habit of becoming stuck in their ways, they slowly lose the ability to dream of what could be, without dreamers like you progress in the world would stagnate."

Peter is saved from having to respond to that when they turn the corner where Delmar's Deli is located.

"There it is, ya I know it doesn't look much on the outside, or the inside either to be honest- BUT the food is amazing. Come on let's go I'm starved." Peter all but skips in his excitement to get to the door and Delmar's delicious sandwiches.

"Sup Mr. Delmar?" Peter says in greeting as he walks through the door.

"Mr. Parker number five right?" Peter turns around to look at Quentin who is looking around Delmar's little shop until he catches Peter looking at him and walks up beside him at the counter. 

"Actually can you make it four number fives?" Delmer looks over the tall stranger next to Peter then turns back to give Peter a look.

"Finally you bring me more business! He's not, ya know, with your Aunt is he?" Peter's face grimaces in undisguised disgust.

"Ew! No! He's uh, he's a friend. From out of town. Jeez Mr. Delmar I bring someone here talking up your place and this is how you treat us?! That's no way to run a business." Delmar gives him an unimpressed look, but holds his hands up in peace.

"Alright, can't blame a guy for wanting to ask about that lovely Aunt of yours."

"Can we please stop talking about Aunt May? It's weird." Peter begs handing over a 20 dollar bill.

"Sure kid." Delmar says with a laugh taking the money and turning away to help make Peter's larger than normal order.

"Thanks." Peter turns to Quentin, "Hope you don't mind me ordering for you."

"No, I appreciate it. I wouldn't have known what to order anyway. Haven't had anything besides what they keep stocked at home." He looks like he wants to say more but glances towards the counter and holds his tongue. 

Right. Can't really talk about that stuff without either A. sounding weird as hell, or B. giving something away. The silence drags between them while they wait for their food, but not only is Delmar's food delicious, it's made fast so they don't have to wait long before Delmar is passing the sandwiches over the counter to Peter.

"Thanks Mr. Delmar!" Delmar waves off his thanks and all but shoos the energetic teen out of his store with a smile. Peter stuffs the sandwiches in his backpack and motions for Quentin to follow him.

"There is a nice little park nearby so we won't have to wait long to eat." If they walk a little faster than before in their haste to eat, neither notices. Peter beelines for his favorite tree and takes his seat leaning back against the tree and opening his backpack and grabbing two of the sandwiches handing one to Quentin who sits next to him against the tree.

"This is my favorite tree, it has the best shade in the whole park. Sometimes when I'm feeling cooped up in my room I'll come out here to do homework or to read. It's one of my favorite places in all of Queens." Peter tells Quentin in between big bites of his sandwich. Sometimes his super metabolism is really annoying, being hungry, like all the time sucks. He looks over to see Quentin eating with just as much enthusiasm as him and files it away as more evidence for his theory that the man has an enhanced metabolism.

Once they have finished their food, in record time of course, they sit under the tree just enjoying the breeze for a time. Quentin runs his fingers through the grass, and watches birds fly from tree to tree while Peter in turn watches him. Quentin seems more at home out in nature than he does anywhere else Peter has seen him. It makes sense, no doubt building architecture alone would stick out as different from the home he lost, while as far as Peter has been able to gather, much of the plant and animal life is shared between the two worlds.

Or maybe it's more simple than that. For the last five years the man spent on Gaea he wandered the barren world planting the seeds of life with Gaea. Being in nature is probably the closest he can get to being with Gaea again, Peter thinks. 

"You really like nature don't you?" Peter asks breaking the companionable silence between them, and for once he's really glad he spoke up when a big smile breaks over Quentin's face like a sun breaking through rain clouds.

"I do, my home, we didn't have the sprawling cities you have here. We had smaller ones of course, but never so packed together like this, but we could do that only having a fraction of the population you have here." A small dark cloud briefly covers the sun of his smile, but it passes quickly. 

"I wish I could show you what our cities looked like. We built around nature, incorporated it into our designs. Just try and imagine if this park spanned the entire length of Queens with homes and businesses in between the trees and bushes. We didn't use roads to travel and instead built around rivers and used boats to travel from place to place."

"Oh like Venice!" Peter interrupts, "In the older parts of the world in Europe we have entire cities built on top of water and instead of streets they have rivers." Quentin turns taking off his sunglasses to look at Peter in surprise.

"I'd really like to see that sometime."

"Oh well, I'm sure all you would have to do is mention it to Tony and he'd get someone to drop you off in a quinjet. Or you could just fly over I guess too."

"I am in no rush, although from what I've seen of Tony you're probably right. I wouldn't want to go without a guide anyway, have you ever been there?"

"Me?" Peter points at himself, "No way! Before I met Tony I never even left New York state or been on an airplane before. Then the whole thing in Germany, I didn't get to stay long, was on the job ya know? Well I guess I've been to space once, that was a wild ride. But um, no I haven't really got out much, still a minor and everything."

"Well maybe we can go explore it together in the future, after all it would only be fair since you've been the one showing me around all this time. It just wouldn't feel right to go see the sights without you by my side."

"Yeah, that does sound awesome, plus then May can't worry too much with you there to have my back. Okay it's a deal we'll see it together then." It does things to Peter's stomach to know the man sitting next to him would want to continue their friendship in the future. Not that he's even said or done anything to make Peter think otherwise but there is that dark part of Peter's mind always whispering that things will come to an end and that he doesn't deserve happiness.

That small part of him that has been with him for as long as he can remember had been whispering in his ear that Quentin was only going to be his friend as long as he needed him. That as soon as he got his feet under him fully that he would become like the others who cast him aside for being the awkward nerd that he is. Or at the very least he would start acting like the others do with him, as if he's someone who needs a babysitter instead of a friend.

He knows he's young, really young compared to most of the other Avengers, and they probably don't mean to be assholes about it, but it doesn't change that they are more often than not. Even Tony was like that for a long time, now he acts like his estranged father who came back into his kid's life after being an absent parent. Not always on sure footing on how to handle Peter at times.

Which, to be fair, is kind of how it is between them. Peter had died, been dead for 5 years and suddenly came back into Tony's life. Time went on for Tony, but it was between one blink and the next for Peter, it made things hard between them at times. Hell, Tony had made a family while he was dead and gone! It's been hard for the both of them to adjust to their new dynamic, especially when Peter found out that Tony invented time travel, risked leaving his daughter fatherless and was fully prepared to trade his life for Peter's.

To go from Tony's hand's off style of 'parenting' to part of the family in a day left Peter spinning for a long time. He thinks they've gotten better at it now, gotten used to Pepper looking at him with love in her eyes as if he really is part of their family, instead of what almost destroyed it. Thank God, Goddesses, Fate, or random luck that brought Quentin through that portal sparing Peter having to go through life knowing he's been the cause of another father figure's death.

He doesn't even want to think about how much more messed up he'd be if that happened. He tries to not think about it every time the thought pops up in his head late at night, but he isn't always successful and ends up sneaking out to sit on the roof just breathing until the thought finally fades away. Right now it's easy to banish the thought while he's out in broad daylight sitting next to the very man who spared him that fate.

Peter looks back over to Quentin sitting under the tree with a peaceful expression on his face and feels the sudden overwhelming urge to take a picture of this Quentin, so different from the man everyone else sees. Quietly he pulls out his phone and double checks that flash is off(been there, done that mortifying mistake) and snaps a few pictures of Quentin's profile. 

Without the big ornate suit he looks so much younger. His shoulders are hunched in and with the hoodie up and his beard peaking out he looks like a college student during finals taking a break in the sun after one too many long nights spent studying. Out here surrounded by nature he's finally let the mantle of being Gaea's Champion, the last of his kind, fall away. Peter thinks this is the first time he's ever seen Quentin Beck, really seen him without all the baggage along with it. 

It's so easy to view heroes as larger than life, as if they aren't real people. Even other heroes do it to each other, Cap-no Steve, can attest to that more than anyone having been the longest lived hero of them all. Hell even in his head Peter has a hard time not thinking of him as Cap instead of Steve, it's not fair and that's with him always telling people he's just a stubborn kid from Brooklyn. 

At least Steve has Bucky now who remembers the man before the shield, but who does Quentin have? He is the man who came from nowhere to save the day, a powerful magic user, a hero. But who is Quentin Beck? Has anyone taken the time to really get to know the man? 

He knows Thor had gotten quite close with the man while they worked out, Peter was invited a few times but spent more time staring than actually working out. But could you really blame him? He has eyes! And Thor? Literally has the body of a God, and it didn't take either him or Quentin long to get back the bodies they used to have. Exhibit B for Peter's Metabolism theory. 

At least he wasn't the only one who gawked and drooled over the two men. Like clock work whenever it was time for one of their sessions coincidentally the entirety of the Avengers and staff at headquarters at the time would show up. Some attempted to make pretense of working out even if they only managed one rep per 5 minutes in their distraction, others just openly stared. Sometimes Adults act more like horny teenagers than they like to think, much to the annoyance of Peter who at least had the decency to stop and feel shame when he noticed himself doing it.

"Something on my face?" Quentin's deep voice asks, breaking the train of thoughts in Peter's head. Great, he was staring this whole time wasn't he? Awesome.

Peter tries to say something but his voice comes out funny so he coughs to clear his suddenly dry throat.

"No, um actually I was just thinking we should take a selfie, a picture, together, ya know to remember this day? Our first time going out as just two people who like each other, as friends and not like coworkers."

Quentin's face does a strange thing where it looks like he wants to cry, laugh, and hug Peter all at once. Instead he just nods his head.

"Okay so you need to get closer, yeah scoot over perfect then put your arm over my shoulders and yup great." Peter instructs changing the camera and holding it out in front of them. He snaps a bunch of pictures, a trick he's learned to get good pictures is to just take a ton of them and some of them will turn out good.

He pulls his phone back to look at them with Quentin and half of them one or both of them are looking at one another rather than the camera, which isn't a bad thing, in fact his favorite is where he's laughing at the camera and Quentin is looking at him with a soft smile on his face. It's the one's where he's looking at Quentin that makes him feel embarrassed for some reason. As if he's been caught doing something he shouldn't. He's frowning at one of them when Quentin stops him from flipping past it with his hand.

"That one, I really like that one." He admits softly, making Peter squirm next to him. "Can you send it to my phone?" He asks. It gives Peter an idea way better than what he had planned for the day.

"I can send you them all, but I can do better than that." Quentin raises an eyebrow in question. "What do you say we go on a road trip? Or do you want to stay and I can take more pictures of us having fun at the park?" 

"Yeah, let's stay for a little bit longer." 

They spend the next half hour trading off who takes pictures as they make silly poses around the park. Peter climbs the tree with ease and hangs upside down from one of the branches which Quentin snaps many pictures of as Peter makes silly faces and laughs. Quentin passes the phone to Peter while he's still upside down and attempts to climb the tree as well but fails miserably when his shoes keep slipping.

Peter makes sure to capture plenty of photo evidence when Quentin falls right down right on his ass and just lays there for a good minute laughing. Eventually he struggles to his feet and holds a finger to his lips and winks at Peter before he starts climbing again but there is a thin mist of green around his feet that no one unless they were as close as Peter could see.

"You cheater!" Peter shouts at the older man as he 'climbs' up the tree with aid of his magic. "This is a no power zone Mr. I'm going to have to ask you to get back down there and do this the right way." Quentin ignores him and keeps climbing until he's sitting on top of the branch Peter is hanging off of. Peter swings back up so they are sitting side by side on the branch.

"Do you honestly expect me to believe you didn't use your super spider powers to climb?" Quentin asks deadpan.

"Hey I'll have you know I've always been a good climber even before that! Besides I can't just turn my powers off, it's in my blood."

"And mine aren't?" 

"Touché." Peter snaps a last couple of pictures of them up in the tree before copying the entire folder of pics and sending them to Quentin. He puts his phone safely back away in his pocket before turning to Quentin and without a hint of his intent falls backwards off the tree branch doing a backflip and landing perfectly balanced on his feet as if it were nothing.

"At least I don't need magic to be cool." Quentin lets out a full bellied laugh before dropping down out of the tree with decidedly less grace than Peter had.

"That you don't."

"Alright let's hit the road!" Peter announces genuinely excited to see how Quentin will react to Peter's spur of the moment idea. They walk together with the mood light between them. It didn't feel heavy before or anything, but playing around without a care in the world was good for the both of them. 

Just two regular people enjoying a relaxing day with no responsibilities hanging over them. Peter vows to do this more often, for both their sakes. Time flies when you're having fun as they say, and it's not long at all before they arrive at a local printing business. Peter tells Quentin to take a seat and wait for him to take care of something so as to not spoil the surprise.

Peter takes out his phone and selects all of Quentin's favorite pictures, and a few of his own before speaking with the woman at the desk and telling her what he wants in a low voice. She glances at Quentin sitting in one of the chairs and looks back at Peter giving him a wink and quietly gets to work.

Peter takes a seat next to Quentin and they talk about random subjects as they wait. Conversation between them never feels forced, nor awkward. A novel experience for Peter who is always struggling with social situations, for a while he thought Ned would be the only person who wasn't family he'd be able to talk to normally-it was that bad. Not that Peter feels that he's gotten any better at talking to other people, it is more that he kinda forgets to be awkward around the older man. 

Like he's so easy to talk to the words just tumble out his mouth before he thinks about it like usual, but instead of awkward silence when he puts his foot in his mouth or when he's been ranting on a single subject for an extended time the man takes it all in stride. He's told him a few times to never apologize for being the smartest person in the room whenever Peter stops mid rant about some nerdy subject or another. 

He knows when he goes off on a tangent thought in detail it is off-putting to most people, been teased his whole life for it so it's hard for him to not habitually stop himself and say sorry. Even around other Avengers he gets looks and awkward silences fall around the room when he does it. Except for around Tony, Dr. Banner, and Quentin of course. He's no where near any of their levels but as a hobbyist of science he feels most at home talking with what has been dubbed the "Science Bros" team.

He could listen to the three of them talk science all day, every day and never get bored. It's a dream come true every time he gets to witness their genius at work, he can't help but get more than a little star struck now and then.

Peter is mid sentence explaining how awesome the science behind Dr. Banner's expanding shorts is when his name is called. He had gotten carried away as usual and had forgotten they were even waiting for something. He jumps up and goes over to the counter pulling out the pictures from the nondescript brown bag looking them over.

"They're perfect, thank you so much!" He thanks the lady excitedly, smiling brightly. She thanks him for his business and laughs a little at his energetic wave as they leave her store. 

"Okay so how about we go to my place and hang out for a bit while I get this ready?" Peter asks patting his backpack where he had carefully put the pictures inside one of the folders inside to protect them from getting damaged. "Aunt May is at work though so you'll have to meet her another time though."

"That sounds great, I've been curious to see how normal people live after having lived with sorcerers and Avengers anyway."

"Well it's nothing fancy, just a simple two bedroom apartment since it's just the two of us ya know, but it's home."

Peter tells him the story about May popping back in their old apartment after the blip and scaring the hell out of the family who had moved in after they had been dusted. Talk about awkward. Luckily Tony had kept all their stuff in storage, like he knew that eventually he'd figure out how to get them back so at least they didn't lose all their stuff. It was hard enough coming back to a changed world, it could have been a lot worse if they were like the many who lost everything else along with their lives when they were dusted.

Before the topic can get too heavy and personal for Quentin Peter swaps to talking about how crazy the last few months were at school because of it. How weird it was to see friends' younger siblings and have them be older than their older brothers and sisters. A it must be a total mind trip for their families, but pretty funny from Peter's outside perspective. He was 'lucky' in that somehow all his friends were dusted right alongside him so there wasn't any weirdness between them at least. 

How much would it have sucked if Ned hadn't been dusted? He'd be so lonely and lost without his best friend.

"You talk about Ned a lot, I'd like to meet him sometime." Quentin interjects surprising the teen.

"Really? Oh man he'd lose his mind, like go total fanboy on you. Might even pass out." Peter laughs at the thought, "That would be great. I'll have to invite him over sometime when you visit. It'll be hilarious to see his face if you were just like sitting on my bed!" Peter can just picture how his friend would react to meet another real life hero other than Peter. 

"Anyway here's my building, Tony got us in here and got us a top floor apartment, makes it easy to you know, do my heroing and all." Peter leads him up ten flights of stairs and to his door. His palms are a little sweaty when he reaches into his pocket for his keys suddenly nervous now that the tables are turned. Only Tony and Ned have visited at home before, he knows he has nothing to be ashamed of and that the other man won't judge him for anything but he can't help but worry a little.

He turns the key and walks in taking off his shoes at the door, Quentin follows suit then looks around with open curiosity.

"Home sweet home. So I'm going to go in my room and do a thing, make yourself at home, snoop through our stuff and I'll be right back." Quentin nods as he looks around the living room so Peter leaves him to go to his room shutting the door behind him. He takes off his backpack and pulls out the brown bag and removes the pictures spreading them out on his bed then looks around his room at the pictures he has framed.

He finds 3 that are just the right size and takes them out and replaces them with the pictures of the two of them at the park. The other two he puts together inside one larger frame meant for a small poster, he adds white paper so there aren't blank spaces between the pictures and hums at his work. Nothing special, but at least it isn't super trashy for a spur of the moment idea. He leaves the two pictures he had printed for himself in the brown bag and stashes them in his sock drawer for him to figure out later. 

Next he rummages through his closet until he finds an old clothing box he kept trading cards in and empties the contents and replaces the now framed pictures inside with a few of his clean T-shirts inbetween to prevent breakage when Quentin takes them home later. He then tapes the box shut and writes on it with a permanent marker.

**TOP SECRET FOR YOUR EYES ONLY**

Satisfied he shoves the box out of the way under his bed planning on giving it to him just before he leaves. He then spends the next 10 minutes hastily cleaning up his room, shoving dirty clothes into baskets and generally trying to make it look less like the teenage boy's room that it is. 

He looks around and shrugs, good enough, then opens his door and steps back out into the living room quietly watching as Quentin moves from one picture to the next in the living room giving each one a good look. Peter's heart swells in his chest, he really made a good call today, the man doesn't need fancy shows, or museum trips. 

What he really needed was a little taste of home, of something more personal and real. 

Peter then spends the next hour giving context to the many pictures May put up all over the living room. From his framed 1st place award for the science fair in 5th grade to him standing side by side with Tony accepting his fake apprenticeship. When they get to a picture of him and Ben standing together Peter grabs the picture and sits down on the couch. Quentin takes a seat beside him.

He talks about his uncle, how much the man meant to him, how he was more of a father to him than anything he had ever known. He gets a little choked up, even now, when he talks about how hard it was to lose him and how to this day he can't shake the guilt. Quentin squeezes his shoulder, his eyes full of understanding as he pulls out the necklace from under his shirt.

He then in turn talks about his daughter, shows Peter her smiling face and says he understands. The guilt, the pain, the loss, all will be with them until the end of their days. It is something they just have to live with, to fight against to keep it from pulling them down into dark thoughts. 

They sit side by side for a time both lost in memories of those they have lost, but the warmth of their sides pressed together keeps the darkness at bay. It feels good, like really good to have someone to talk about this with. Peter refuses to talk to May about Ben, he just can't. No matter what anyone says, he feels responsible, if it were not for him Ben would never have been there in the first place. He has no right to talk to May about Ben because when you get right down to it, he's the reason her husband is gone.

He knows, he really does, that she would never blame him, but he blames himself enough for the both of them. He's tried talking to Ned about it a few times but he doesn't get it, not really. He's never lost anyone, he doesn't know what it's like. And talking with Tony? He just plain doesn't deal with emotions. He'll lock himself in his shop and build things to work through his issues, not exactly the best role model for healthy coping mechanisms. 

Peter turns to look at Quentin and opens his mouth to tell him how glad he is to finally have someone to talk to who understands but his stomach takes that moment to remind the room at large and at high volume that he has an enhanced metabolism. Quentin turns to Peter who has gone beet red in the face and just stares for a moment before his own stomach makes itself known.

They both lose it full on clutching their empty stomachs as they laugh and laugh and laugh. Eventually they manage to stop long enough for Peter to lead Quentin into his room and grab his bag with the two remaining sandwiches. They sit side by side on his bed eating in silence as they concentrate on filling their demanding bellies.

Once they are finished Quentin asks about the models hanging from Peter's ceiling who happily dives right into explaining each one. When he asks about the legos not understanding them Peter goes full nerd mode explaining one of his favorite hobbies. He quickly comes to the conclusion that it would be better to show rather than tell so he digs out the Voltron boxed set he'd been saving to work on with Ned one of these weekends and mentally apologizes to his friend. He'll understand right? After all Peter is just recruiting a new member of the Lego Force making their duo into a trio, that's a good thing right?

They spend the next hour sitting cross legged on Peter's floor working on separate Lions that will make up the legs as Peter explains how each separate Lion they are making will go together to form the totally awesome Voltron when they are done. They could have been done building by now if it were him and Ned but Quentin has never played with legos before and doesn't have the muscle memory and often has to twist the instructions around as he stares at the different pieces that make up his Lion. 

It doesn't help that Peter is talking a mile a minute about how cool the show is, the original and the remake that was made and promises to show it to Quentin one of these days. Eventually, after Peter is done with his Lion, he helps by way of handing pieces to Quentin as he works on his. The teen is careful to only help a little bit so that when Quentin is finished with the Lion he'll get to enjoy the feeling of accomplishment. 

Eventually Quentin finishes his Lion and smiles brightly at Peter clearly proud of himself and it does things to Peter to see that smile. So carefree and young sitting on his bedroom floor as if this was the best time he's had in a long time. Peter was able to do this for him, to give him at least a small piece of something he hasn't had in a long time.

Peter praises his work and promises they can work on it again next time, because of course there is going to be a next time. They've been building a strong relationship each day spent together and Peter can just tell it's one that is going to last. Each story shared is a building block just like the legos they have been playing with. He doesn't know how their building blocks will fit together just yet, but he can feel that it will be amazing.

Peter glances at the clock and sees that May will be getting off work soon, and as much as he'd like for her to meet Quentin it's best to not surprise her with it so he sadly informs Quentin that it's time to go. He promises the man that they'll do this again soon and after he talks to May maybe they can have a nice family dinner. He's sure May won't mind, she is always over joyed when he has Ned over anyway.

Quentin says he'd like that very much and helps Peter put away the lego set they were working on and then waits as Peter calls for a cab to pick up Quentin so he doesn't have to brave the subway on his own. Peter grabs the box out from under his bed and hands it to Quentin and makes him swear to not even peek at it until he's home. 

They wait outside for the cab to arrive and he gives Quentin a hug goodbye before he gets in the car and is driven home. He waves as the cab drives off and feels a sense of accomplishment of a deed well done he normally only feels after helping someone as his alter ego. He did a good thing today, even if it was more than a little self-serving as he had a blast hanging out with the older man.

He climbs back up the stairs and while he waits for May to get home he browses online for replacement picture frames and two new ones for his own pictures he kept from today. 

************************

Quentin is dropped off near the Avengers headquarters and makes his way inside holding his gift from Peter close. He nods in greeting to those he passes by but doesn't stop to talk as he's excited and nervous in equal parts to see what Peter got him. The journey from the side passageway to his room seems to take ten times as long as normal as the anticipation eats at him but finally he makes it to his room and shuts the door behind him.

He puts the box down on his bed and carefully peels the tape away so he can open the 'Top Secret" box and reveals clothing wrapped around several bundles carefully. His heart thunders in his chest already knowing what they are protecting, his hands shake slightly from emotion as he unwraps the first one revealing Peter's smiling face staring back at him.

He carefully unwraps them all and sets them side by side on his bed. 

His vision goes a little blurry as tears build up in his eyes at the precious gift Peter has given to him. His friendship, tangible proof of it, to fill his lonely room. 

He runs his fingers along the frames of the pictures of the two of them smiling and enjoying each other's company. He gently picks up the double picture and the one of them sitting side by side on the tree branch and arranges them carefully on his dresser, the fourth he puts in the bathroom so no room is without that bright smile to warm it. 

The fifth, his favorite. The one where Peter is looking at him with a soft smile while Quentin is looking at the camera for the picture he holds onto admiring the genuine look in Peter's eyes. His smile is not for the camera, but for Quentin himself. Quentin sits on his bed emotions rolling within him as he stares at the picture before setting it on the nightstand next to his bed so it will be the first thing he sees when he wakes up.

He lays on his bed looking around his once barren room now filled with life and shamelessly lets the tears fall. For the first time since he lost everything he feels like he belongs. Like he is a part of something, he was afraid he would spend his life on the outside looking in while surrounded by the people of this world. 

Now he only has to look around to see that if nothing else there is someone who accepts him, the real him without all the baggage of powers and what goes along with that. 

What could he possibly say to Peter to express his gratitude? He is at a loss for words, for there are no words he could say to convey how he feels, the sheer amount that he feels right now. 

Less is more, he's been told so he wipes the tears from his eyes and sends a simple "Thank you." and gets an immediate reply of "Anytime" and a bunch of happy smiley faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I don't write dating fics, I'm bad at them as I don't date. 
> 
> I'm the type to hang out with someone as a friend and then it turns romantic....so that's whats happening here. Sorry if that's weird for anyone, I can only write what I know so *shrug*


	13. And That's How I Met Kevin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During a patrol Quentin stumbles upon a man in a dire situation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have 4 chapters written into this arc, not quite done but close enough i want to post this one. :D

In the following weeks since their first outing as regular people they make sure to plan at least one day a week for hanging out. Peter doesn't tell anyone, not even Ned, which is weird if he thinks about it. Shouldn't he be bragging about it instead of sneaking around? 

Peter doesn't know why he does it, maybe he feels special being the only person who gets to know Quentin like this, maybe he's afraid to share? He doesn't really understand it himself, but Quentin isn't bringing it up to other people either so maybe this can just be _Their_ thing.

The only person who knows is Aunt May since he did ask if it was okay to have Quentin over for dinner after all. The two of them hit it off well, not like creepy 'I'm into your Aunt' well though thank god! Peter doesn't know what he would do if literally every friend he has had hit on his Aunt. Instead Quentin is on his best behavior around his Aunt, falling into the habit of speaking more formally, and Peter kinda gets that. Always a little scary to meet your friend's family, even as a full grown man it seems.

The only downside to their outings is that Quentin acclimates to the world even faster to the point that the other Avengers deem him fit to go out on his own and not worry about him causing an international incident or whatever. He doesn't entirely stop helping Peter with his patrols or anything, it's just Peter has gotten used to seeing him every night and feels at a loss without him at this point.

Quentin, with his ability to fly great distances at high speeds, goes out five nights a week throughout the U.S. helping here and there when he sees and hears trouble mostly in the forms of car accidents and fires. It becomes such a habit that he gets publicly thanked and given the title of a first responder by the mayor of one city. He accepts the honor with grace and poise fitting a man who was once the savior of an entire world.

When Quentin accepted that first honor he opened up the floodgates for other news outlets itching for an exclusive interview with the up and coming hero of the common man. After consulting with Pepper he decided to get his feet wet, so to speak, with a 60 Minutes interview as they are well established and known to be fair and thorough with their research. It didn't hurt that they wanted to learn about the world he came from rather than the man himself.

Peter watched it at home with Aunt May and he isn't afraid to say he was moved by it. He knows so much about Quentin and his life before he came here now but they thought to ask all sorts of questions he hadn't. Like it never occurred to him to ask why the population was so much lower than that of Earth's and it turns out that is due in no small part to Gaea's teachings that all love, be that between man and woman, man and man, or woman and woman were to be treasured. 

That one is sure to twist the panties of the most conservative of people and they'll likely throw dirt on what they previously thought was a paragon of virtue and valor in Mysterio, but screw them, Peter thinks. In this day and age it's a wonder anyone has remained hardcore conservative with how crazy their world has become.

Quentin goes on to elaborate that among his people they all contained a spark of Gaea within them that would shine brightly when they kissed who they were destined for, like when he had kissed the woman who later would become his wife. Within all of them was the potential spark to be lit by both a man and a woman, in fact many in his society had full-filling relationships with both aspects at one time. He, himself, never sought out his male aspect as he was more than happy with his wife and her with him, but when asked he says he wouldn't have minded if she had instead chosen to also full-fill that side of her.

It would do nothing to diminish the love between them, because people do not have a finite amount of love in their hearts that they must horde. Instead, he argues, that the more love you give the more you have to give. 

The rest of the interview, while mostly likely very interesting goes on without Peter hearing another word as he processes what he just heard. 

It kinda blows his mind to think about how different this world is for Quentin. Soul mates, magic, Goddesses, were all a given there. A fact of life, but here all of that is up in the air. No wonder he struggles so much, it's almost worse than being a blank slate who knows nothing. It's like finding out everything you were ever taught might not be right anymore, that you can't trust even simple facts of life that have been true since before you were born.

"You alright there Peter?" May asks him, breaking him from his thoughts and making him realize the interview has long since ended and he missed more than half of it.

"It's nothing, I was just thinking about how hard it must be for him, like his whole world is upside down now. Like can you even imagine how hard it must be to get up every morning not being able to trust the foundations of what you know to be true anymore?"

May gives him a long look before bumping her shoulder into his.

"Well it's a good thing he has the Amazing Spider-Man on his side to help him out then isn't it?" She says with a smile lightening the mood. "I hear he even made good friends with one super smart Peter Parker too! I think he's in good hands."

"Aww May" Peter ducks his head at her praise, she always seems to know just what to say.

Later that night is their one night a week that they still patrol together, not because Quentin needs to be baby sat, or to baby sit Peter but because they both enjoy it. Peter wants to bring up the interview he watched but every time he looks over at Quentin his words die in his mouth for some reason so he lets resting dogs lie as they say in a really old movie.

Though he doesn't say anything he can't help but view the other man in another light from then on. Whenever the other man isn't looking Peter finds himself staring at Quentin, wondering how this world and its people look through his eyes. He gets caught staring often and gets many raised eyebrows for his troubles but never asks, and Quentin never pushes. Sometimes it's good to have a few secrets, really adds to the mysterious aura right?

It is not until nearly a month later when Peter realizes he might have a little bit of a problem. It is during one of their shared patrols when they have split off to check on different parts of the city and Quentin is late for their rendezvous and Peter swings from building to building to find the missing hero. 

He catches sight of the dark red cape fluttering in the wind but his spidey sense alerts him to take caution. Instead of swinging up he crawls out of sight along the tall building where Quentin is floating in front of another man standing on the ledge outside his window.

Oh god. 

Up until this point Peter hasn't had to try and talk anyone off the literal edge and his heart rate skyrockets as he realizes the gravity of the situation. He positions himself in such a way to stay out of sight but able to web the man if Quentin fails in talking him out of it and however unlikely somehow gets past him.

He strains his enhanced senses allowing him to pick up the hushed conversation happening above him.

"Talk to me," Quentin begs the other man in a soft voice, "I literally have all the time in the world and I want to help so please just talk to me. Maybe we can figure this out together."

"There's nothing to talk about!" The man shouts half hysterical "They're gone, they're both gone and it's all my fault!" 

"Who is gone?" Quentin asks but the man spits at him.

"What do you care?! It's not like you-you heroes really care about us? It's all fighting big monsters and not giving a shit about us little people, how your fights, your wars affect us!" 

"Maybe you're right about some of them, but not all of us are like that." Quentin subtly hovers a little lower as to not be towering over the agitated man. "I lost everything and everyone I ever loved over five years ago. I wasn't even there when my wife and daughter were killed, I couldn't even save them. So yes I do care, I care a lot so please talk to me. No one should ever have to go through that alone."

The man is silent for such a long time that Peter tenses ready to intervene but eventually the man mumbles something too low for Peter to make out. 

"What were their names?" Quentin asks softly, another reply too mumbled for Peter to make out but he dares not risk getting any closer. 

"That's a beautiful name, my little girl was named Hope and I miss her every moment of every day just like you miss Claire. Can you tell me what happened? Sometimes it's easier to talk about with a stranger rather than with someone who knows you, I won't judge you." Silence. "Or I can tell you what happened with my family first if that'll make things easier, although it might be easier to have this conversation inside."

There is a long silence until the man nods almost like he can't believe he's agreeing to invite the mysterious flying man in a cape in his home but is just so done with the world that he doesn't even care anymore. They leave the window open wide so Peter waits a few minutes just to be sure before moving closer so he can hear their hushed conversation inside the man's home.

". . .I understand completely why you don't trust us heroes to look out for the common man as you said, because I've had to make that choice before and Gaea help me, it is hard to not regret it every single day. I chose the job over my own wife and daughter, maybe I couldn't have saved them and they'd have died anyway but I wasn't there for them in their final moments. Just as you said I was one of those people who raced off to fight without thinking of what would happen to people around me, those I cared most for.

"I wasn't even with them when they died, never got to say a last goodbye, or even tell them I loved them. I had a job to do and I just rushed off without a word, without a second glance. And-and it haunts me every night. You have every right to expect heroes to not care because we have a job to do, I've witnessed the mentality and had it myself, but no more. 

"I've thrown all that behind me, hurt myself and those I loved because of it and I'll never do it again. I'm here for you, if you want to talk all night, yell and let it out I've got nowhere else I'd rather be. I was all alone with my pain and no one around to share the burden, I wouldn't have anyone go through the same.

"So let's sit down and talk. I'm all ears."

The man struggled to get his story out but once he did it left Peter in tears to hear that when the man was dusted he was driving on the freeway with his wife and baby who were left behind. With no one at the wheel the car crashed and neither survived. All their things, their home, the life they had built together was auctioned off until nothing remained, because why would anyone hold onto it? The Avengers had killed Thanos and it didn't bring anyone back, if they failed what hope was there?

Who knew that five years later they would figure out a way to bring everyone dusted back? Who could have predicted that? So people like this man were left coming back with their entire lives erased, as if they never happened. There were stories on the news of suicide rates of those returned on the rise but May always changed the channel quickly before they went into details. 

Peter had never considered just how lucky he was with all his friends and May being taken with him. What if May had lost him too? She would have had no one left, what if it was too much for her and she thought about ending it like the man in the apartment? How would Peter feel to come back and have her gone?

In the back of his mind he had known he had gotten off easy, he just never thought of how bad it could have been. Hearing the man break down over the loss of his wife, his child and left nothing to even remember them by? It brings the young Avenger to tears to hear how the man has suffered. 

How many other people are quietly suffering something like this? How many people does he cross on the street that didn't get their happy ending when they came back?

Peter doesn't know how long he sits there on the ledge before the man's cries die down into occasional hiccups of breath. He hears Quentin's deep voice murmur something to the man in a low voice he can't make out and a fresh round of sobs break free before falling off.

"It feels good to let it out, never be ashamed of it, we all have to cry sometimes I do it myself alone in the night when the memories get too much for me. Even Thor, a mighty God has openly wept with me over those we held dear who are lost to us. If a man that large and powerful can cry, we all can."

There is a hiccuping laugh filled with tears from the other man.

"How-how d-do you get up-p in the morning with t-them g-g-gone?" The man asks with a stuttering breath.

"A lot of mornings it's a struggle to just get out of bed, to face the day knowing I'll never see them again. I have trouble sleeping and nightmares mess up what little sleep I do get." Quentin admits, "But then I think of what they would want from me, they wouldn't want me to give up, they'd want me to be happy even when I don't want myself to be happy.

"And when that doesn't work, I think about all the new people I've met, the friends I've made here and have to think that if I had just given up I would have never met any of them. By all rights I should have died and stayed dead, but I didn't and I have to think that it was for a reason. That there is something greater than myself to live for.

"Right now that reason is you, and people like you. I was given a second chance at life and I can't waste it, I have to help anyone and everyone I can. Just think, you didn't get on the ledge last night when you could have. You waited and I found you, that can't have just been chance. I refuse to believe that it was.

"If you hadn't waited we would have never met, just think of all the other people you have yet to meet. I know it's going to be hard, I was alone for a very long time, but I held on and now I am surrounded by the most amazing people who have quickly become precious to me. People with hearts of gold that aren't afraid to share them with the world."

"But you are some hero with powers, it's different for people like you."

"Maybe you're right, but you've met me haven't you? I didn't lie about caring, about wanting you to see the new day, and the day after that. Life is hard, it hurts, and sometimes we lose, but it is also big and beautiful. Hold my hand and let me show you what I see when I look at you."

A bright green light floods out of the window illuminating the night sky for a moment before slowly fading.

"That love you felt, it is the life inside of every living thing and it is just waiting to be discovered. We are no different in that respect, mortal or God it lives within us all. You just have to be brave, and you've already been so brave to have survived so long on your own with the ghosts of those you have lost. 

"I don't want you to be alone, if you have no one else, you have me. Here this is my number, may I have yours? I don't sleep much so you can call or text at any time and I'll answer. I don't want you to suffer through this alone, no one should so please do not hesitate to call if you need to hear a friendly voice."

Peter hears the sound of Quentin's phone going off as the man calls so they have each other's numbers.

"Hold on one moment, I just realized I was late for rendezvous with my partner, let me text him to let him know everything is okay so he doesn't worry. He's a great guy and probably scouring the city looking for me right now."

Peter takes a deep breath and steels himself before hoping in the window.

"Umm too late? Sorry." Peter says awkwardly surprising the men in the dark room by his sudden appearance. "Um Hi. Maybe you heard of me? Spider-Man? Sorry for um, listening and stuff, like I know that's not cool, but I was worried and couldn't just leave ya know?" Peter rambles as the man stares at him in distrust.

"Okay I'm really bad at this, sorry. Mysterio is much better at like talking and stuff my bad." Peter rolls his shoulders about to make possibly a very bad or a very good decision, but he's learned to trust his instincts at this point. He looks over at Quentin who gives him a tiny nod to go on so before he can second guess himself he pulls off his mask and holds his hand out to the other man.

"Hi, I'm Peter." 

The three of them talk long into the night, only stopping to call May and tell her he's working on something not dangerous and that he'll be fine, he promises. She isn't sure until Peter hands the phone to Quentin who assures her that he will personally see him home safe and sound as soon as they are finished with their 'hero business'. The other time they stop is when Peter's stomach rumbles loudly.

That is when Peter gets the bright idea to bring the man, Kevin, with them to their roof top lunch place for some fresh air. Quentin flies the man with Peter swinging his way on his own. Seeing the man's face full of wonder as he is flown over the city Quentin gives Peter a look and takes the scenic route to give the man time to enjoy the sights of the city lights. By the time they land the mood has changed drastically between the three.

Peter pulls out his sandwiches and hands one to Kevin and one to Quentin leaving none for himself. Quentin just gives him a look and tries to hand it back but Peter refuses to take it so with a huff Quentin tears the sandwich in half so they can share. It won't be enough for either of them but neither will back down on the other taking food so here they are.

They eat slowly for a change not wanting the other man to feel awkward which isn't too hard with the two of them filling the air with conversation. 

"Peter saved me as much as I saved you, in this very spot. I was afraid to reach out, to burden anyone else with my problems but this guy right here? He was braver than I could ever be, he reached out to me when I needed it the most. I hid my pain, saved it up for when I was alone so no one would have to see me so weak when I'm supposed to be this big, strong, powerful hero and not a lonely hurting man.

"I almost lied and said it was nothing, but something in me told me I could trust him and so I told him that I was hurting. It was a struggle to get the words out but the more I said the easier it got. It wasn't an overnight thing, that is not how recovery works, but day after day knowing at least one person out in this big universe knew what I was going through and genuinely cared for me? It changed everything.

"When the dark thoughts would haunt me at night I could pretend Peter was there and imagine what he would say about me being so hard on myself. So when you are feeling that way know that not only do you have me out there wishing you well, you have Peter too and let me tell you this guy is one of the few heroes who really lives up to and surpasses expectations."

Peter ducks his head shyly, blushing.

"When I had no one he was here for me. Let me, let us be there for you please. You are not alone, this is a big world with so many good and kind people in it you just haven't met yet. There are support groups for people going through these trying times just like you and me, we'll get you the help you need if you'll let us."

They stay out on the roof top for many hours, not wanting to return the man to his lonely dark apartment. It's not until the sky starts to brighten that they return to the man's home, the all nighter wearing on them all. Quentin has Peter change into his regular clothes so he can fly him home without raising suspicions after Kevin promises to get some sleep and text Quentin first thing when he wakes up to let him know he's okay.

They say their goodbyes and long hugs are exchanged with promises of a brighter future and meeting again soon before Quentin flies off with a sleepy Peter in his arms. Peter nods off in Quentin's warm hold a few times during the short flight, another drawback of his enhanced metabolism is needing more sleep when he hasn't eaten enough, which he never seems to do.

Quentin gently shakes him awake after he dozed off again and finds himself in his own room. He stumbles out of the man's arms and face-plants fully clothed on his bed earning a laugh from the tall man. He feels his shoes being taken off and the covers being dragged over him before Quentin gently ruffles his hair and whispers near his ear.

"You did good today." He hums in response already falling back asleep before Quentin even leaves the room. 

Peter dreams of a handsome face on a dancing green dragon always just barely a step ahead no matter how fast he chases. He wakes up reaching for someone who isn't there and realizes he has a problem.


	14. Everything Changed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter has a realization about his friend and that he has a problem on his hands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ԅ(≖‿≖ԅ) Tags have been updated to match the story as it currently stands.

After that night something changed in Peter, he could no longer deny the strange pull inside him when he thought of the man from another world. He had been telling himself it's not that different from how he feels for Ned, like a best friend, but that was a lie. He knows that now, a friend wouldn't miss the warmth of his friend's embrace.

A friend wouldn't get dreamy eyed and caught staring at them. They wouldn't dream of them. 

At first Peter fought with himself, it was no different from how everyone looked at Thor right? When someone is that good looking you can't help but notice and appreciate right? But when he sees Thor on the couch watching T.V. he has no desire to crawl into the man's lap and be held. He doesn't miss him when he's not around, or think of all the things he wants to say to him when he next sees him.

That is something more than friendship and appreciating a good looking person. 

Shit. 

Peter paces the length of his small bedroom as he panics. He can't like Quentin! Not like that! He's-he's a grown man and Peter is just a scrawny kid from Queens, not even 18 yet! Why can't he fall for someone normal? Why does it have to be the daughters of villains and widower's from another universe?!

Peter pulls at his already messy hair from rolling around in bed all morning. Maybe it's just a phase? He's never thought of a guy like that before this. . .Or-or maybe the idea got put in his head when he watched the interview and found out Quentin's people naturally went both ways? Yeah maybe, maybe this is just a silly crush and it'll go away if he ignores it. It's not like he could do anything about it anyway.

The older man had lost his soulmate, how could Peter ever hope to measure up to that? He's still a few weeks out from even being a legal adult, no one would look twice at him still being a kid and all.

Calm down Peter, he tells himself. Just play it cool, for once in your life play it cool. You can get through this, it's just a crush, no big deal. Happens to people all the time, it's not the end of the world. 

He can do this, he mentally psychs himself up, shaking his head to clear the jumble of panicked thoughts from his head. He gets dressed, eats breakfast and tries to go about his day as if he hadn't just lost his crap over crushing on his older male friend. Yup, nothing weird about that at all.

Over the next few days he gets text message updates from Quentin about Kevin and how he's doing. It's relieving to hear Quentin was able to talk the man into going into support meetings for those coming back from being dusted. It puts Peter's little freak out into perspective, who is he to freak out over nothing when there are people all around the world dealing with so much worse.

He almost forgets about his little 'revelation' until Sunday rolls around, that is _their_ day when he suddenly has a stomach full of butterflies at the thought of seeing the other man. He spends more time changing in and out of clothes that morning than anything else as he has the urge to dress nicely for the other man, not that he'd notice, or look, or care or anything. Then changes back to his regular comfortable jeans and favorite hoodie cause he told himself he'd play it cool.

And suddenly doing his hair and wearing nice clothes? That's not really playing it cool. He waits around his kitchen snacking on everything in sight as he waits for the time Quentin should be showing up, Peter had planned to spend the day showing him old movies so he could get his and Tony's references, he's been really looking forward to showing him Dune so he can point out all the similarities between his suit and the stillsuits the Fremen wear. 

They have watched movies like the original Star Wars trilogy together before, but now Peter is afraid he'll make it awkward. He's good at that. It's just two guys, hanging out and watching movies. It's not like it's a date or anything. 

Be real Peter, who would even want to date you? A voice that sounds like Flash's taunts him in his head, and he can't argue against it. He's gotten exactly one date in nearly 18 years and he blew that one big time. His track record is awful so he shouldn't even worry about it. 

A knock on the door pulls him from his thoughts, he runs his fingers through his hair a few times knowing it won't help before taking a deep breath and whispering to himself, "Keep it cool Parker." and opening the door. 

Quentin is wearing the same outfit Peter had first picked out for him again, designed to hide away all the pretty features of the man but even still Peter's breath catches a little at the bright blue eyes staring back at him. Of course he wouldn't wear the sunglasses inside the building Parker, he's not a douche or Tony. Not that Tony is a douche or anything, if anyone can pull off sunglasses indoors it's him. But just saying.

"Can I come in?" Quentin asks with a cute(did he just think cute?!) twist of his lips.

"Right, sorry. Yeah, please come in." Peter mumbles, stepping aside so Quentin can come inside. For once he thanks the fact that instead of just the normal four states of matter there is a fifth state just for him. He's always in the fifth state, the awkward state, so it won't be anything out of the ordinary. Nothing for Quentin to become suspicious about, not that he should be suspicious! They're just hanging out. 

Right?

Quentin takes off his shoes by the door and hangs his hat on on the coat rack. He starts to unzip his hoodie to put on the rack as well as it is nice and toasty inside Peter's apartment and Peter turns around fast. Not looking, nope, not gonna look. He walks over to the kitchen and grabs a bag of popcorn and puts it in the microwave and stares at it while the bag slowly expands and the kernels pop in lieu of watching Quentin.

By the time the popcorn is done and he's bringing it into the living room Quentin has taken his seat on the two person couch. Peter pauses for just a second too long before he sits down at the very edge of the couch leaving nearly a foot between them earning a questioning look. He plops the big bowl of popcorn down between them like a barrier and grabs the remote as if this is normally how they watch movies. Instead of so close that when they shift ever so slightly their thighs brush. 

He never sat that close to Ned, didn't even realize it was weird that he was always so close with Quentin until recently. Is that another one of those cultural things that are different between their worlds? Did they not have the same need for a personal bubble in Quentin's world? Is he being rude right now forcing the space?

"Everything alright Peter?" Quentin asks after a moment of watching Peter's face flash though half a dozen expressions in the last minute.

"What? Yeah, no I'm fine. Sorry I just didn't sleep well last night. Had a lot on my mind." Peter isn't lying, he DID sleep poorly the night before, but that was worrying about today, not anything else but Quentin doesn't need to know that.

"Anything you want to talk about? I'm always here for you Peter, what ever you need." God the man is so sincere it hurts, but in a sort of good way? 

"No, um I know that. It's just something I gotta work through, it's nothing serious don't worry." Quentin gives him a searching look before smiling.

"If you're sure."

"Yep!" Peter drags out a hard pop on the 'p' and hits start on the movie. It takes a few minutes before he relaxes back against the couch as he gets into the movie. It's a classic and one of his all time favorites and he loses himself to the story and the characters for a time until they get to the part where the Fremen man is explaining the workings of the stillsuit to Duke Leto Atreides and his son Paul.

He looks over at Quentin who is looking at the T.V. with an open mouth surprised by the similarities himself.

"See!" Peter exclaims pausing the movie where they are showing the pouches for water recycling, "I told you it was a stillsuit! I mean, yours looks way cooler, but the same principal right?" 

"That is really amazing they came up with this design just for fictional entertainment." Quentin looks away from the screen towards Peter, "Did they ever make it into a real working version?"

"No, but they totally should have. It would have been awesome. We don't really need anything that heavy duty here, I mean maybe they could use it out in the Sahara Desert or something but it would be too expensive for normal people to use. Besides the natives there have their own ways of surviving out there and they've been doing it for thousands of years so it can't be all that bad right?"

"You're probably right, but maybe I can get back to helping with technology by making my designs public here like I did on my own world. There is just so much new to learn it seems I'm always overlooking something."

"Nah, I think you're doing good. Great even."

"With you here to catch my oversights? Sure. What would I do without you?" Peter goes beat red, he knows the other man doesn't mean it like that but tell that to his fluttering heart.

"Whatever man, let's just get back to the movie." Smooth as a porcupine Parker, his inner Flash voice berates him but he just starts the movie back up. 

As the movie goes on they eat all the popcorn on auto pilot until the bowl is empty and without thinking Peter moves it onto the table out of the way. Without the solid object between them they slowly gravitate towards each other, pulled by some invisible force like two magnets until they're once again side by side. Peter doesn't realize his mistake until he feels the heat of Quentin's exposed skin brush his arm.

He jerks in surprise moving back and putting a few inches between them again giving Quentin a sheepish look when the man looks at him strangely. Quentin pulls his arm against his body with his other hand tracing one of the lightning pattern scars with a finger and mumbles out a quiet sorry.

Shit. 

He probably thinks I'm grossed out by the scars or something now. Great job Parker. It's not like the man doesn't hide them under the long sleeves of his suit or hoodie all the time. In fact, this is one of the few times he's had them exposed even around Peter. Way to make the guy feel bad about himself. 

Even when he worked out in the gym he always wore a sweatshirt that covered them, the only other time Peter has seen more than a glimpse of them was when he was getting examined when he was phasing in and out of this universe. 

Peter told himself he wasn't going to make this a big deal, that he was going to act cool, but here he is alienating his friend for no damn reason. Screw this, he thinks before scooting back closer and slowly reaching out to lay a hand gently on the scared forearm eliciting a sharp intake of breath from the man.

"It's not-I just." Peter fumbles for a starting point, "I was just surprised is all. They don't-they don't hurt do they?" Peter asks softly. Quentin is just staring down at Peter's hand on his arm not saying a word for a moment before he lets out a small huff of air.

"No, it doesn't hurt."

"Good, that's good." The air is thick with tension between them, the muscles in the arm under his hand are tense.

"If it-" Quentin starts not meeting Peter's eyes, "You don't have to, if it bothers you. It's fine, I understand I can put the hoodie back on?" While it would probably be safer for them both if he did, Peter can't let him cover himself up in shame. It's just not right.

Instead Peter gently lifts Quentin's arm and moves it behind him over his other shoulder and scoots back in closer until he's resting against Quentin's side. They've done this before and it was no big deal then and it shouldn't be now even if Peter's heart has been getting funny ideas lately. It changes nothing, they can still be there for each other.

Peter can feel the strong thump of Quentin's pulse on his side as the other man's heart races not unlike his own. For one brief moment Peter closes his eyes and imagines what it would be like if their hearts were racing for the same reason. If the other man felt the same way as him. . .

Keep dreaming Parker.

The moment passes and Peter reopens his eyes and the two of them watch the rest of the movie in silence, neither daring to break the spell between them. It is not until the credits are rolling that Quentin breaks the silence with a soft voice.

"Sometimes, the things you do, just who you are, it makes it hard to believe that you can be real. Just when I think you can't possibly be a better person you go and do something like this and I-I don't even know what to say sometimes. Other than thank you, I don't think if I did good deeds the entire rest of my life I could pay back the kindness fate has granted me by letting you be in my life."

Peter doesn't dare look up, he might do something crazy if he looked up to see Quentin's unearthly blue eyes looking down on him filled with sincerity after saying something. . .something like that. 

"How did I get so lucky to have the very first person I meet in this universe turn out to be someone like you. If I had known you would be at the other end of the shining gold portal I'd have walked a hundred years through Gaea's deserts with a smile on my face. I know you don't like getting praise, but you truly are one of a kind in the best of ways and I need you to know how much I appreciate you and everything you do."

The small blossom of hope in Peter's heart swells three times it's size until he feels like he's going to burst with emotion. Quentin says things like that, and he means them. He really means them. He talks about how special Peter is when he is just as special to Peter too. 

He wishes he could tell Quentin how much he means to him, how his feelings have started to grow, but he can't. It might ruin everything between them if he knew. Even if he could maybe, just maybe feel the same way there is no way he'd get involved with a minor. He's too good and pure, Peter is sure of that if nothing else. 

Whatever may be different in their worlds that is something they share. There is just no way for it to work. At least. . .

At least not yet. His treacherous heart supplies, his birthday is just weeks away after all. If he was 18 and a legal adult there wouldn't be any moral question right? Unless of course this is all in his head and the affection the man has for him is that which an older brother has for his kid brother.

Why does his life have to be so complicated? 

Peter is saved from having to come up with. . .something to say to that when Quentin's ringtone goes off. Both of their first thoughts are that it is Kevin and he might be in trouble so they break apart with nothing more than a shared glance so that Quentin can answer.

It is Kevin, he's having a bad day and so they cut short their hang out so Quentin can leave to keep the other man company. Peter feels awful but he's so grateful that the call happened. His head clears while Quentin is out of arm's reach as he fumbles to put on his shoes while holding his phone in one hand.

Peter was _this_ close to saying something, or doing something that he might regret. There is just something otherworldly about being in the man's gravity that makes his head spin and fill with fantastical thoughts. As soon as he's out of it and has his head back on straight he realizes how many foolish assumptions he was making about the other man who has never shown any interest in anyone since he came through the portal. Maybe he can't unless it's with his own people, Peter is always forgetting that though the man appears human he's not. 

He is from an entirely different universe, and who knows how the rules of attraction work for him. 

Peter sees him to the door waving off the mouthed 'sorry' with a shrug and a smile. He mouths back 'don't worry about it' and gets a grateful smile in return before the man is walking down the hall. Peter watches his retreating back until he's out of sight before shutting and locking his front door with a sigh.

He's in big trouble and he can't do this on his own so he calls the only person he trusts with something like this.

"I need your help Ned."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished writing this arc, while not perfect I think it will be good. Will post the chapters over the next few days as I work on the next one with actual plot ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	15. Slow Down Peter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter calls in the cavalry in the form of Ned to get advice about his problem with Quentin.

The second Ned knocks on his door he ushers him into his room and shuts the door without saying a word.

"What's up Peter?" Ned asks with a big smile. as he watches his friend pace the short distance of his room.

"Okay so you know Mysterio and like how we're bros and stuff right? Well like outside of heroes we are like super good friends. Like crazy good Ned, like he comes over and builds legos with me right? Well we've been hanging out for a while now, sorry I didn't tell you, but we built Voltron without you." 

Ned interrupts with a "Hey!" but Peter steam rolls over his protest as he continues rambling.

"Anyway like we hang out a lot and we talk a lot, and we've gotten close, like really close ya know? Like I probably know more about him than anyone alive, but more than that he trusts me and I trust him. But I-I got a problem Ned. I think-thinkIlikehim. Like I like-like him. But he's an adult who lost his soul mate and I'm not even 18 and I think he likes me too, but I don't know. Maybe he thinks I'm like his kid brother or something I don't know but all I know is I'm in trouble and I need help Ned." Peter stops pacing and throws himself down on his bed. "I need your help Ned."

"Okay hold up, that was way too fast and way too confusing and I'm pretty sure you left out like, every detail." Ned says and he's 100% right. "So first of all how could you betray the Lego Force Code and build without one of the founding members?"

"Dude!" Peter shouts in exasperation because of course that would be the one thing his friend heard correctly.

"Sorry, sorry!" His friend waves his hands in apology, "Okay so what I got from that was that you like that Mysterio dude, since when did you even like guys Peter? I feel hurt that you would hide that from me, you know I'd never judge you."

"I don't, well I didn't. I don't know, I never thought about it before. I mean I checked out Thor but everyone does that." Ned nods conceding that one, "I'm not like gay or anything, I really did like Liz, have always liked girls. I think it's more that I like Quentin, and the fact that he's a dude is secondary I guess? I don't know how this works, I've never even had a successful date."

"Wait okay so I've heard about that before, some people who don't see gender and instead just see the person. That could be it. Cool." Peter lets out an exhale of breath, it's not like he needs a sexual identity crisis on top of everything else so it's good to hear that maybe he isn't a freak. Maybe there are others like him, he'll have to look into that later.

"But wait Peter isn't the guy like 40?"

"No he's 30." Peter corrects knowing it sounds almost as bad.

"Jeez Peter don't you think he's a little old for you?"

"Of course I think that! I know he is!" Peter exclaims in frustration, "But it doesn't change how I feel about him. God he's just so-so perfect you'd have to meet him to believe it."

"Well if he's so perfect why is he messing around with someone over a decade younger than him? You're still a minor for a few weeks and I don't care how perfect you think the guy is, if he's been after you while you're under age he's not a good guy."

"That's the thing, I-I don't know if he likes me, but I know that even if he did he would never do anything about it. He's not the one pursuing me, but he's just so kind and sincere I almost kissed him on my couch earlier!"

"Ew." Ned makes a face at the thought of that, "So you're telling me that you're the one acting as jail bait? I think I'm going to throw up."

"Thanks a lot Ned. It's not like that though. I don't know there is just something about him that makes me want to do something crazy and stupid."

Ned is quiet for a moment with his thinking face on in full force before he looks back up at Peter with a serious expression.

"You know I love you man, you have been and will always be my friend, but for both your sakes you gotta stay away from him." Peter opens his mouth to protest but shuts it when Ned holds up a finger. "I wasn't finished, you gotta stay away from him, at least until you're 18. It's bad enough there is the age difference thing but not even being legal? Come on man, you know better than that."

Peter hangs his head in shame, his friend is right. He's let his hormones, his emotions get the best of him. It's not like something is going to happen between now and then that would change anything. He's glad he called Ned over, his friend always knows how to help him when he's having one of his freak-outs. 

"Real talk?" Ned starts getting a nervous look from his friend, "Even if you picked some old dude I'm glad to hear you haven't completely given up after everything that happened with Liz. I've been worried about you man, the whole Avenger/Spider-Man thing kinda took over your whole life for a while there. I missed having my friend."

"I missed you too Ned, and I'm sorry I've been so distant lately. I should have made time for you, I was being selfish and a bad friend."

"You were." Ned agrees without any heat, and Peter deserves that. "So how about you catch me up while I come up with a suitable punishment for breaking the Lego Force Code?"

Peter smiles, he really missed having Ned around. Even if he doesn't understand the whole hero world Peter is in he's always willing to lend an ear. It doesn't hurt to have a perspective outside the crazy Avenger world either, sometimes Peter forgets what it's like to just be a person he gets so caught up in everything.

Ned listens and asks questions as Peter fills him in on the details of what has been going on with him over the past few months since they graduated and he dropped off the radar. Turns out there is a lot to go over and they end up talking for hours non-stop until there is a knock on Peter's front door.

"Expecting anyone else?" Ned asks, knowing his friend isn't the type to have many visitors. Peter shakes his head no and looks at the clock, still an hour before May should be home so it shouldn't be her and it's not like she is the type to ever forget her house keys.

"Nope." He pops the 'p' with a sinking feeling he knows who is at his door. "Come on you might as well meet him, now is as good a time as any I guess."

"Oh shit are you for real?" Ned asks then hurriedly gets up and follows Peter to the door. Peter opens it revealing Quentin standing there awkwardly with a bag in his hand.

"Hi Peter, I uh, felt bad about leaving like that so I thought I'd bring you something to eat. Kevin is doing okay now, I know how you worry." Quentin says as he walks through the doorway stopping when he sees Ned standing next to the couch trying for a casual pose and failing miserably.

"Oh, uh sorry. I didn't know you had someone over." He glances at Peter in apology before walking up to Ned with his hand out for a handshake. "You must be Ned, Peter has told me a lot about you. I'm Quentin Beck, or Mysterio but I'd prefer if you just called me Quentin." 

"Yeah uh, Hi, I'm Ned. Wait, you already know that. Um nice to meet you?" Ned fumbles a little star struck, he didn't plan on meeting any world famous wizards when he got up this morning. 

"Pleasure is all mine, I've been wanting to meet the famous 'guy in the chair' for a long time now." If it were possible literal stars would be shooting out of Ned's eyes right now, it's always been his dream to be thanked and appreciated by real life heroes. Not that Peter doesn't count, but it's different when you grew up with the guy.

Peter coughs awkwardly in his fist making Ned realize he'd been shaking the other man's hand on auto pilot this whole time. He lets go quickly and giggles out a sorry.

"I didn't think you'd be coming back and it's been a long time since I've hung out with Ned so I invited him over. Sorry he gets a little weird around famous people, give him time and he'll remember how to person eventually." Peter apologies for his friend.

"No, that's fine, great actually. It's good you have friends, especially ones as stand up as this one. I should be the one apologizing, I didn't even consider you might make other plans, I feel like I'm interrupting." Quentin walks back over to Peter and hands him the bag with two sandwiches in it. "I got you two number fives as a peace offering since I know they are your favorite. I'm glad you got someone here for you, too much hero business isn't good for you." He says with a knowing smile.

Quentin turns back to Ned.

"Take care of him for me." He says turning to clap Peter on the shoulder and gives him a warm smile before leaving. Peter shuts the door behind him and turns back to Ned.

"Okay I can see why you might like him, he just has this presence that makes you like him on sight."

"I know right?! It gets worse the more you get to know him, cause he's just so genuine and kind." Peter says with a fond sigh. Ned walks up to him and puts his hand on his shoulder and stares into his eyes with a serious face.

"You've got it bad man."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short one before things start to get interesting ;)


	16. Burfday!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter turns 18 and gets an unexpected gift from his crush

Avoiding Quentin is surprisingly easy over the next two weeks with Ned at his side as a good excuse. It makes it easier to say he has plans when he actually does, Peter doesn't think he could stomach lying to the man even if it were for a good cause. 

That doesn't mean he doesn't miss the man though. He hasn't even gotten to see him on their shared patrol nights, not by Peter's doing though. He couldn't come up with any good reason to not go with Quentin so it's lucky that the man from another universe was the one to text him saying he wouldn't be able to make it as he had a special project to work on with an upcoming deadline.

Peter asks what it is but Quentin just replies with a picture message of him covering his mouth with his hand followed by him shaking his head. Peter sends back a picture of him pouting with his best puppy eyes captioned 'Pretty please????'. There is a long wait before Quentin responds; 'The best things are worth waiting for'.

Peter reads and re-reads that message hundreds of times over the next two weeks. He knows he's letting his imagination run wild, surely it has nothing to do with Peter's own struggle with his feelings. Don't be silly Parker, the world doesn't revolve around you, it probably has nothing to do with you, his inner Flash berates him. There are a million things Quentin could be working on, in fact they just recently spoke of how he missed inventing and sharing his creations with the world, it's probably something to do with that.

Maybe he's trying to figure out how to replicate how his under suit works so we can have cheap stillsuits for real. Could be anything really.

It's not until the week before he finally turns 18 that he gets a call from Quentin.

"Hello?"

"Hey Peter, how are things?" 

"Pretty good, been having a lot of fun catching up with Ned, but to be honest I've kinda, sorta been missing spending time with you."

"Me too, actually I'm calling about just that."

"Yeah?"

"What are you doing for your birthday? Do you think you could be free for a few hours?"

"Umm I didn't really have any plans other than a birthday breakfast with May before she goes to work. What did you have in mind?"

"Well I was thinking we could go out somewhere fancy and discrete to celebrate your big day. I know a place where we won't have to be in disguise, we can be ourselves and no one will know. Avenger approved and everything."

Peter's heart is beating so loudly in his ears he almost wants to ask Quentin to repeat himself in case he heard it wrong. 

"Yeah. Okay, I mean that sounds great!" 

"I'm sure you have some fancy suits courtesy of Tony, pick your favorite and I'll wear mine. As much as I enjoy being comfortable it'll be nice to dress nicely at least once, and I want to do this right. Does that sound good?"

"Yeah no, that sounds awesome. It's been years since I've had a reason to wear anything nice, I'll be looking forward to it."

"Great, I'll send you the details after I get the reservation set up. Talk to you soon."

"Okay, bye."

Peter stares at the home screen of his phone after the call ends for a solid two minutes before he snaps out of it and immediately dials up Ned.

"What up Peter?" Ned answers on the second ring munching on what sounds like chips on the other end.

"So I'm like freaking out right now, I just got off the phone with Quentin and he's invited me to some fancy dinner place for my birthday after weeks of missing our patrols to work on some secret project that he said wouldn't tell me about even when I gave him the puppy eyes. He just said 'the best things in life are worth waiting for' like what does that even mean? Does it mean what I think it means? He has to know what it means when I turn 18 right?"

"Dude, take a deep breath and relax for a second." Peter takes his friend's advice and can feel some of the panic leave him.

"Alright so if it does mean what you think it means then what? Would you two like, start dating or something? Is that something you would really want?"

"Yes." Peter answers without hesitation, "Like I haven't really dated or anything but if I was going to try it with anyone it would be him. I think it would be like how we hung out before just like better ya know?"

"Okay, but what if it's just a regular birthday dinner and gift? Are you prepared for that? I'm not saying that will happen, but you gotta be ready for it Peter, you haven't had the best record after all." 

Peter is silent for a long time. He knows it would hurt to not have his feelings returned, like a lot, but they could just go back to being friends without all the awkwardness on his end right? It wouldn't end anything right? He got over Liz, sure it took years but he still did it. He's already been so lucky to even have someone like Quentin in his life, asking for more is being borderline greedy.

Although for once in his life he wants to be greedy, has always been greedy with his time with the other man if he's being honest with himself. He alienated his best friend for months just to get more time with Quentin, and has kept their meetings a secret so he wouldn't have to share the man with anyone else.

"Yeah, it would suck, like really bad, but I could deal with it. I mean, it's not the end of the world right?" Peter laughs weakly at his own bad joke, his last date did almost end with him dead and buried under a warehouse after all.

He gets off the phone with Ned feeling a little more rational about the whole thing. It would be silly of him to expect too much, what kind of person goes to his own birthday dinner only to get upset about not getting the gift he wanted? Ben and May didn't raise him to be a brat like that, they taught him to appreciate gifts given from the kindness of people's hearts. It's too bad that this time he wants the heart as the gift instead.

Peter's face cringes at how weird that sounded even in his own head. 

Peter does his best to push the impending birthday dinner out of his head for the next week and does a pretty good job of it until the day arrives. He enjoys his breakfast with May, she made him 18 birthday cup cakes each with a lit candle. It was good, they were good. But he's distracted throughout the day as his nerves get the best of him.

His thoughts just keep going round and round wondering how the day will turn out. Hope wars with anxiety within him, neither side managing to win out leaving him in a muddled state for most of the morning. It's not until he gets a video call from Tony and answers to see the Stark family squished together to fit on the screen that he starts to relax.

Morgan leads the singing for wishing her 'big bro' a happy birthday. They are off key and out of sync more often than not but it's perfect. Morgan's giggles alone are enough to banish all his worries. The call ends and he gets texts from many of the other Avengers wishing him well and an actual handwritten letter from Thor in the mail promising to 'celebrate his manhood in a manner fitting of the 'mighty warrior' at his convenience. 

His day is looking up from then on. What does he have to worry about after all? It is HIS day after all, no matter what he has all these people in his life wishing him well. It's already better than the last who knows how many birthdays he celebrated with only May and Ned at his side. 

An hour before his big not-a-date he opens his closet and pulls out the dark grey suit Tony had bought for him and the matching maroon shirt. He decided against wearing a tie, not really his scene preferring the more casual look. Ties remind him too much of funerals and loss, and today is about celebrating. He pulls on the fancy dress shoes and ties the laces before standing in front of May's full length mirror.

He looks good, really good honestly. With his hair styled into a neat flowing wave instead of a mop of crazy curls he almost looks like a new man. Which he kinda is now.

He is a man by law, no longer a boy. He didn't feel any different when he woke up this morning, but looking at himself in the mirror for the first time he feels like he looks the part. This is the first day of the rest of his life as a legal adult, it makes sense to dress it, at least once. Quentin had a good point in encouraging him to do this, makes it feel more real.

As if summoned by Peter's thoughts his phone rings and the picture of Quentin smiling face Peter has saved to his contact shows on the screen.

"Hey." Peter answers the call with a surprisingly even tone for how many butterflies are in his stomach.

"Hello Peter, ready for your big day?" Quentin's deep voice asks him over the line.

"Yeah I can't wait."

"Well I hope you won't be disappointed with what I have planned."

"I won't be." Peter says more than 100% sure of it. Quentin laughs softly.

"I sure hope not. Well your ride is here and waiting outside. I didn't want to push our luck with not getting found out so I got one of Tony's people to come pick you up instead of coming myself."

"Oh, that's smart, yeah no that is fine. So I'll see you there then?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Peter smiles to himself as he ends the call and grabs a pair of sunglasses, just in case before leaving and locking up the apartment. He walks with a skip in his step down the many flights of stairs until he is stepping out of the apartment building. There is a sleek black Cadillac waiting for him on the side of the street with a guy leaning against the hood of the car. 

It takes Peter a moment to recognize him as the guy who Tony lovingly refers to as "Galaga Guy". After Shield crumbled Tony snatched up many former agents, and the man with balls big enough to play Galaga on a helicarrier with Fury as a boss? His name was on the very top of that list. 

They chit chat a bit on the drive about video games, a shared interest of theirs. Peter listens with interest as Galaga Guy goes off excitedly about up and coming games that Peter had been too busy to look into. The time passes pleasantly and the conversation is great for distracting Peter from his nerves. Before he even knows it they are parked and he's being led into a fancy, and he does mean fancy, restaurant.

This is definitely the kind of place Tony would suggest for impressing someone. Peter doubts he could afford to even enter the building under normal circumstances, but being an Avenger has some perks. Tony probably owns the place, would explain why they don't have to worry about secret identities and all that fun stuff.

He's led in by a host who doesn't even ask for his name, as if he just knows who Peter is and why he is here. Which he probably does. Peter tries and fails to not openly gape at the decor that must have cost more than he'll make in a lifetime as they walk through the foyer of the restaurant. Everything is lit by false chandeliers with flickering lights to imitate candle light making the setting very intimate and classy.

He passes by tables with couples here and there throughout but by no means would he call the place busy. Groups of people are seated far enough apart to give the illusion of privacy and anyone without enhanced hearing wouldn't be able to overhear anything said outside of their table. He is led past a dozen or so tables and turns a corner towards what must be the back of the restaurant when he sees a lone man sitting at a table who stands as he approaches. 

Peter's mouth goes dry with each step forward he takes.

Quentin is dressed in a smart black suit that fits him perfectly; showcasing his broad shoulders and large frame. He's left the jacket with only one button showing off the white dress shirt he has on under. The top button is undone and he's also chosen to skip wearing a tie which Peter, for one, is grateful for. It shows more of how the shirt sits on his well built chest. 

His hair, which Peter had gotten used to seeing in varying states of disheveled from hoodies, caps, and flying in the wind, is slicked back with product but not too much. The dark brown strands of his hair rests lightly back on his head just a touch messy in the best kind of ways. Don't get Peter wrong, he loves seeing Quentin a bit grungy when they would hang out in disguise but this is something else.

He feels like he went to sleep and woke up in a Disney movie where he's the downtrodden Princess and Quentin is here revealing himself as his Prince Charming in disguise all along. 

"Wow Peter." Quentin says, his voice a little husky. "You look. . .you look amazing." Peter blushes, secretly relieved that his change of appearance has gotten to the other man as well. 

"Thanks, you too." Quentin pulls out the chair for Peter to take his seat like the gentleman that he is. Peter nods in thanks as Quentin pushes his chair in before taking his seat. They kind of just stare at each other for a moment without saying anything each not-so-subtly checking the other out. Quentin looks like a model at home in a fancy restaurant in his nice suit, it's almost hard to imagine this is the same man who just a few weeks ago had grass stains and dirt on his clothes from climbing trees with Peter.

Quentin blinks then must realize he had also been staring and lets out an awkward cough.

"Sorry, I just wasn't expecting you to look so. . ." He trails off.

"Me either. I mean damn you look good like this. Not that you don't look good, no great all the time. But you know what I mean." Peter fumbles earning a good spirited laugh from across the table.

"No I completely understand. Same." Quentin says with a wink that _does things_ to Peter. "So I thought, since it is your big day we could do things a little, well a lot different from normal if that's okay?" Quentin asks uncertainty in his eyes.

"Different is good." Peter's sensitive ears catch Quentin mumbling 'Sure hope so' under his breath. 

"You always ordered for me so I thought maybe I could do it for you, I asked around what your favorite things are and already ordered a bunch of things I think you would like if that is alright?" Peter's heart warms at the thought of the man planning this in advance and asking people close to him what he likes so that it would be perfect for Peter.

"Well you know me, I love food so I'm sure everything will be amazing. I mean just look at this place!"

"I know right?" Quentin agrees looking around the place, "I almost feel like I am under dressed to eat here."

"No way! You look like a model." Foot meet mouth. Quentin just cracks a sideways smile at Peter's unexpected compliment.

Peter is saved from coming back from that by the arrival of food. So much food. Like a feast of food. Plate after plate is placed between the two of them, more fitting for a group of 5 than just two men. His mouth is watering just looking at the wide variety of dishes before him. 

Once the waiters leave he looks up from the food to see Quentin looking at him with a soft, fond smile. He waves with his hand at the food for Peter to begin.

"I can't give you the world, but at least I can give you a taste of it." Quentin says grabbing his fork, "I figure you will be less shy if you have someone to share with so we can both try everything and order more of what you like best."

"I don't know if I'll need more after this." Peter says, even as his stomach disagrees strongly. With his enhanced metabolism he could eat everything on the table by himself, but Quentin gives him a knowing look and just puts a fork full of food in his mouth.

Well he can't have Quentin eat by himself so he picks up his own fork and digs in to one of the plates. They comment on each thing they try and encourage the other to have a bite when they really enjoy it. They hum and make sounds of enjoyment as they eat and before he even realizes it they've eaten almost everything on the table and for the first time in a long time, Peter's bottomless pit of a stomach is content for once.

Waiters appear just as they finish the last of it to take away the plates. These people are good, guess they would have to be to work at a place like this. Peter had almost forgotten there was anyone here besides Quentin and him until they magically appeared. 

"How are you feeling about desert?" Quentin asks while one of the waiters waits behind. Peter judges the room in his stomach(infinite) and gives a thumbs up. The server nods and bows out of the room only to return a moment later with a covered dish that he lays on the now cleared table. He removes the top and the smell hits Peter's nose before he can even see it.

Fresh, warm apple pie. His favorite. When the server leaves he looks up at Quentin, maybe a little teary eyed. He hasn't had apple pie since Ben was still with them. It was his favorite too, but after he died Aunt May stopped making it. Not that he could blame her, so many memories attached to the three of them sitting at the dinner table after all. 

"Do you not like it?" Quentin asks in concern. Peter wipes at his eyes and shakes his head.

"No, I love it." Peter reaches across the table to grab Quentin's hand giving it a reassuring squeeze. "I mean it, thank you. I haven't had apple pie in years." 

Quentin looks down at their joined hands rubbing his thumb across the back on Peter's hand a few times before looking back up at Peter. Peter gets a little lost looking into Quentin's eyes, he doesn't know how long they sit there hand in hand, but he does know that he'll now think of this day too when he smells apple pie and maybe that's okay. Maybe it's a little better than okay.

Quentin blinks and the spell is broken, he gives Peter's fingers a squeeze before taking his hand back and motioning to the pie between them.

"If you would do the honors." Peter's fingers tingle from Quentin's touch, he rubs them against each other before grabbing the pie server and putting a piece on his plate and then one on Quentin's. He glances up at Quentin who is watching him waiting for him to take the first bite and so he does.

His eyes close as the taste hits his tongue. The sweetness of the apples, the soft flakes of the crust. It's perfect. He savors that first bite chewing slowly, oh how he missed it. He lets out a small moan of pleasure as he pulls the fork out of his mouth having finished the bite. He opens his eyes to see Quentin staring at him with a hungry expression.

"So good." Peter says motioning for Quentin to try a bite of his untouched slice. The man blinks down at his own pie as if he had forgotten all about it while watching Peter eat his. He brings a fork full to his own mouth and tries it, while he doesn't moan out loud like Peter had it is clear that he enjoys it from the way he eats fork full after fork full until his slice is gone. Peter savors his slice as if it were his last, even though he knows he could eat the entire rest of the pie in front of him and Quentin wouldn't say a word.

Which, of course, he proceeds to do. He looks up half guilty at Quentin after he's eaten 80% of the pie on his own but the man just smiles at him content to watch Peter enjoy his long lost favorite food.

As the last slice disappears into Peter's mouth the ninja-like waiter returns to take away the tray with a nod towards Quentin. Peter rubs his stomach and gives the other man a huge smile.

"That was amazing, this is like the best birthday ever! Thank you, you're the best!" 

"It's not over yet, I still haven't given you your gift." Oh. Peter had almost forgotten about the secret thing the man from another universe had been working on these past few weeks. Just the meal, the fancy restaurant, and the pie were enough for Peter to be happy. He doesn't know what else the man has planned to top this off, but he almost can't wait to find out.

Quentin reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out a simple metallic box that he holds in his hands for a moment as if he is suddenly nervous himself. Peter's mind blanks. Full on abandons him when he sees the box. It couldn't be. There is no way. 

But what else could it be?

Quentin takes a deep breath before reaching across the table and handing the box to Peter. The young man turns the box around in his hands feeling the metal before opening it to reveal what is inside. His breath catches when he sees a beautiful silver spider on top of the green triangle eye symbol that adorns Quentin's suit. 

He pulls the box closer to his face as he examines the intricate details of the pendant. The eight legs of the spider curve around the triangle as if holding it in place, he runs a finger along and is surprised when Quentin's symbol glows faintly green. He looks up at the man across the table in stunned confusion.

"What is this?" He had first thought it jewelry but for it to be infused with magic it must have another purpose. Quentin stands and walks over and gets on one knee beside where Peter is sitting. He holds his hand out for the box and pulls the pendant out when Peter hands it to him.

"I made this for you to protect you and to keep you safe." He begins, "With this Peter you can call to me no matter where I am in the universe and I will feel you. It's made from pieces of my suit infused with my magic, with this it will be like you have part of me with you. You have but to think and wish for it and I will know where you are and can come if you have need of me.

"I wish you could stay a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man forever, but life doesn't always work out that way, but with this? I won't have to worry that you'll be on your own. No matter the time, the situation, if you call? I will come, nothing will stop me."

Peter is floored. He just stares at the man kneeling next to him not saying anything for a time.

"I won't be able to track you if you don't will it. I assure you, all the spells are tied to your will so you don't need to worry about me spying on you or anything nefarious."

"No!" Peter yells out too loudly for the fancy restaurant they are in. "No," He says in a quieter voice, "I wasn't worried about that or anything I just wasn't expecting. Well. Anything like this."

"Too much?" Quentin asks with a slight wince, but Peter frantically shakes his head no.

"No, it's, it's wow. Does it work both ways? Like if I want to know you are safe can it work like that?" 

"Of course that would be your first thought." Quentin says with a shake of his head, "But yes, you could use it to feel where and how I am if you wanted. Here." 

Peter cups his hands to take the pendant but as Quentin puts it in his hands he closes his own around Peter's and the pendant within. He closes his eyes and Peter can feel warmth emanating from the object in his hands and catch the faint green glow of Quentin's magic that slips through the cracks between their fingers. Quentin reopens his eyes and moves his hands away.

"It's bound to you now. No one but you can use its magic, nor will the power ever fade. If nothing else, you can count on this to work if ever comes the day you need it. Although I hope that need never arises."

Peter's throat closes with emotion, he doesn't know what he could say-if anything to that. Instead, he opts to put the pendant on but having never worn as much as a necklace before he struggles with the clasp until he feels Quentin's fingers brush his own as he hooks the chain through the loop for him.

Peter looks at Quentin, their faces are so close now and his heart thunders in his chest. This close up Peter can see every strand of hair in Quentin's beard and feel the warm puffs of air when he breathes. He wonders what it would be like to kiss him right now, what would it feel like to kiss someone with a beard? What would it feel like to kiss someone period? He glances up quickly hoping his face didn't betray his thoughts but he finds the other man looking down at his lips much like Peter had been looking at his.

He scarcely dares breathe lest it break the spell and stop whatever is happening from happening. Quentin's lips part ever so slightly causing Peter's to do the same. The other man's lips sway ever so slightly closer and Peter closes his eyes in anticipation but nothing comes. When he reopens them Quentin has stepped back with a guilty expression on his face that disappears as quickly as Peter spotted it.

Not long after that Quentin informs him that they are sadly out of time and that he best get the birthday boy home safe and sound so May doesn't yell at him again. The air is charged between them with things left unsaid on both sides when they part. Peter knows-he knows he's not just imagining it. Something is there between them, some spark of something more. 

You don't just give someone a part of you as a friendly gesture. Not how Quentin had done it anyway. Peter takes the pendant out from behind his shirt on the drive home and runs his fingers along the rarest metal in this universe and thinks about what it means. When he had first pulled out the box he almost thought it was a proposal, like maybe on Quentin's world they skip dating and go straight to that or something. When he saw a pendant and not a ring he thought he was wrong but was he?

There is just too much he doesn't know about the culture he came from, and now it feels way past the point where he can ask. If he asked now it would just be weird, wouldn't it? 

Besides he has zero doubt in his mind that the other man was thinking about kissing him too. But why didn't he? He literally got down on one knee and offered Peter a piece of him. A way to look into his heart, and Peter accepted. If they were in a romance movie that would have been the perfect time for him to lean in the short distance and press their lips together- but he didn't.

Maybe Quentin is just as confused on how dating/relationships work here as Peter is. Maybe this is sort of like a promise ring some girls get? Like maybe Quentin is still weirded out by Peter's age even though he's legal now. Wait, was the legal age in his world higher? Oh, he hadn't thought of that before. That could be it. Maybe that's why he gave him this pendant. 

Or maybe this gift is exactly what he said it was. Something to ease both their minds when they are apart. Being an Avenger is a dangerous job after all. Could be similar to the baby monitor protocol Tony had installed in his suit. Maybe all the tension he had felt between them was just in his head. He does have a wild imagination but deep down he doesn't think that is it. His instincts are telling him there is more, and they haven't led him astray before.

He lays awake in his bed for long hours that night toying with the pendant and wondering about the mysteries of it and the man who made it for him. He concentrates and thinks about wanting to know how Quentin feels. A green glow lights up his dark bedroom and he feels a warmth in his chest that must be Quentin and a general sense of direction where Quentin must be right now.

He doesn't really understand how the magic works exactly, but he knows that unlike with Dr. Strange Quentin's magic comes from him and works with his emotions. Quentin had explained that the magic is a part of him, so maybe that is how it works. Like because it is him in a way that when he thinks about him it's like asking him. Cool.

Peter thinks about sending him his own feelings and suddenly the feeling in his chest grows as if it could fill the whole room. He doesn't get any thoughts or words, apparently it doesn't work that way but he gets a sense of pure happiness from Quentin that works like a feedback loop making his own feelings grow. He lays there in bed letting the soothing warmth flow over him for just a moment longer before he lets go.

Peter stops concentrating and lets the pendant drop back down on his chest and the feelings cut out. The green glow fades casting the room in darkness once more while Peter thinks.

There is no way this is something friends, even the best of friends would do for each other. A direct line to each other's emotions? That has to be one of the most romantic ideas ever thought up. Their worlds can't be that different in that respect. 

Peter could spend all night going round and round wondering the why's and the why not's if he let himself. Instead he tries to be the adult he is now and let it go at least until morning. Whatever reasons Quentin has Peter has to trust them for now. He has all the time in the world to figure this out, but at the end of the day? He knows he has Quentin on his side one way or another so what does it matter? It's already more than Peter could have wished for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This god damn chapter, let me tell you! Uhg, I don't know how many times I had to re-write the sucker. . .always felt off so I wrote the next FIVE chapters before the annoying plot hole I couldn't see but knew was there cropped its ugly head up. At least I was finally able to fix this one. xD
> 
> Next chapters will be slow in coming because I have to tweak them all from the changes in this one. . .and cause I want to get the other arc at least a quarter done because I let the characters have the reigns and its going off course from where I originally intended. Thanks a lot Peter pffft.


	17. Caught

Quentin wakes up after having some of the best sleep he's had in so many years. He hadn't expected that when Peter tried out the pendant he made for him that it would feel that way. To feel the warmth of another soul touch his own, so close to what it felt like to have Gaea within him...something he never thought to feel again. Tears of pure enjoy had streamed down his face as wave after wave of affection came across their brief connection last night.

He held tight the memory of Peter's warmth within him in the dark night and slipped into a blissful sleep entirely free of nightmares for a change. He awakes refreshed and looking forward to the day with renewed vigor the likes of which he had not had since his world was destroyed. He turns his head to look at the picture of them on his nightstand, his favorite one where Peter has only eyes for him, as if he had forgotten for a moment they were taking pictures.

His heart constricts in a painful way every morning when his eyes open to see it. It makes him want things he cannot want. Should not want. Things he cannot have, should not have.

These feelings had been slowly building in him from almost the moment he stepped into this universe and met the young man. The more he had gotten to know the young Avenger with a heart of gold the more the feelings had grown and try as he might to ignore them they did not go away. If anything they became stronger the more he tried to push them to the side.

He lied to himself for months that it was just hormones from going so long without anyone of his own, that it could have been anyone he would feel for after being alone for so long. But then why is it only Peter's smile that makes his heart stop? Why is it only Peter's touch that reawakens long dead desires?

When he felt Peter in his heart last night there could be no denying his feelings. They were there, they were strong, and Gaea help him, they were true. It felt right in a way that he hadn't felt since he lost his wife, right in a way he was so sure to never feel again. 

And yet.

There could be no denying it. Nor could he continue to turn a blind eye to the way he catches Peter looking at him more and more often these days. For a time he thought to play a similar role in Peter's life that Tony does, that maybe that is why Peter looks at him with wonder in his eyes at times. But he never looks at Tony like he does Quentin, as if he is the one lucky to be so close, as if he wants to be even closer.

Quentin squeezes his eyes shut as guilt wrecks him from just looking at the picture of Peter's smiling face. It does nothing to alleviate the guilt, in fact the image of Peter dressed smartly in his suit last night comes unbidden to his mind's eye.

He was gorgeous.

Wrapped in the dressings of a man rather than that of a boy it gave Quentin a mental disconnect. 'You can't feel this, he's just a kid', and other arguments evaporated like so much smoke. 

He almost kissed him for Gaea's sake! He was this close to leaning in the last few inches, oh how he wanted it. Wanted Peter. The way Peter had closed his eyes so sweetly, as if he too was waiting and wanting. It took everything in him to move back, and he nearly couldn't do it!

What is he going to do? He can't seriously be considering. . ? 

He rubs a hand across his face feeling the rough hair of his beard against his fingers. He is just so young, it would be wrong to want to keep him wouldn't it? He is too old for him, the kid hasn't had any experience with love while Quentin was married and had a family. How could he possibly be thinking of tying him to himself more than he already has?

His inner war is interrupted by a loud pounding on his door. His eyebrows wrinkle together in confusion wondering what could be going on. He throws the covers off and looks down glad to see he had the sense to change into his under suit before going to bed before he opens the door. Something is shoved hard into his chest as he is pushed back into his room as Tony advances on him.

Quentin walks backwards, hands trying to catch the handful of papers? Before they hit the ground but his morning reflexes are too slow. 

"What the hell is this?" Tony has tightly coiled anger rolling off him in waves as he stares down Quentin. The man from another universe looks at him in confusion for a second before bending down to pick up one of the papers and flips it over revealing not a page but a picture.

A picture of him and Peter from last night. Slowly, as if swimming in sand, he flips over more pictures of the two of them smiling at one another. The last one seals his fate, damning him. His weakness captured and immortalized in film when he had nearly kissed Peter.

"What. Is. This." Tony repeats jabbing a finger at Quentin with each word.

"It's not-" Quentin begins

"If you say it's not what it looks like I swear to God I will end you. I wasn't born yesterday, don't treat me like an idiot." Quentin snaps his jaw shut with a click. 

"Now I'm going to ask you again what is this? Cause I know when I told you about this place, my place, it was to take out someone special not a kid. Not MY kid!" Quentin opens his mouth again but Tony gives him a look that could cut steel. "If the next words out of your mouth are that he's not a kid anymore, they'll never find your body.

"I'll tell you what this looks like, this looks like you took MY kid out on his 18th birthday for a nice romantic getaway and gifted him what? Some jewelry? What? Now that he's 18 you think you don't have to sneak around anymore?" Quentin looks up at him in shock. "Yeah I know all about your little 'dates' Pep told me not to worry that you probably looked at Peter how I do and heaven help me I listened to her. I trusted you. We all trusted you.

"And what did you do with that trust? You spit in my face! How long ago did this turn from friendly to something more devious? Or were you after him from day one?" Tony demands spitting fire with his words.

"It wasn't like that! I assure you Tony!" Quentin begs the other man to understand, "I didn't-I swear to you I never meant for this to happen, and I didn't-I didn't do anything to make it like this, it just sort of happened."

"Oh so you expect me to believe that you just accidentally started dating someone nearly half your age?! That's not how it works, I mean just look around you!" Tony swings his arms out towards the framed pictures in the room, "That is not how you look at a friend, a kid you should be watching out for not preying upon!"

"I'm not preying upon him! I would never do that!"

"Bullshit!" Tony spits the word in his face like an attack before taking a deep breath and continuing at a lower volume. "Okay, so if I'm to believe the lies spewing from your mouth how did you think this would be okay? Cause it's not. It's not okay to take a KID out in secret, if you had nothing to hide I would have known about it from the start. I wouldn't have had to find out by chance, you would have told me. That alone tells me your intentions weren't pure from the very beginning."

"They were!" Quentin protests.

"Were. Key word. Okay so what? What if you mean what you say, then once you started feeling, I feel nauseous just thinking it, _something_ for the kid you should have put an end to it right then and there."

"You're right." Quentin admits quietly momentarily surprising Tony into silence. "You're right I should have. I shouldn't have-it should have never gone this far. I knew-I knew I should have backed off but I was weak, I lied to myself saying it wasn't what I knew it was."

Quentin drops down on the corner of his bed and puts his head in his hands. He runs his hands through his hair in desperate frustration.

"I know I made a mistake, kept making it. I let this get too far, I know that. But I swear to you Tony, I never meant to have this happen. If I could change things I would. You think I like feeling this way about someone so young?" Quentin pulls at his hair before letting his hands fall to his sides.

Tony stands over him, anger radiating from his body even as Quentin is too ashamed to look up and meet his eyes. 

"I see the way he looks at you now. You let your own perversion affect him, he's never even had a real date before this and you've been wining and dining him as if he knows what it is when you know damn well he doesn't have a clue. You got his head full of thoughts he shouldn't even have, not for a grown ass man. He should be looking at people his own age, you've done this to him and you're going to hurt him leading him on like this."

"You think I don't know that?!" Quentin shouts, jumping to his feet getting into Tony's face. "You don't think I know how much it's going to hurt him when I turn him away now? All I ever wanted was to make him happy, and instead I'm going to be the reason he's hurting. How do you think that makes me feel?"

"I don't give a shit how it makes you feel." Tony tells him looking into his eyes deadly serious. "This, all of this? It's on you, and you're gonna fix this. I don't care what you have to say or do, this _thing_ you've got with my kid? It's over. You're done."

Quentin nods his head, he knows Tony is right. If he hadn't managed to stop himself last night. . .it wouldn't have been right. He very nearly let his foolish lonely heart make a choice that isn't his to make. In good conscience it can't be Peter's choice either, not when he doesn't have any real idea of what he would be getting himself into. 

"I'll-I'll take care of this."

"You better because next time? Heaven won't be able to help you if there is a next time because I won't be using words." Quentin has never seen nor heard Tony speak in such a serious and deadly manner. He knows the man means every word he says, and then some. Of course he does, he's protecting his kid from someone he thought he could trust. Any parent would be ready to go to war to protect their child, but with Tony? He can actually back that up with firepower.

Tony turns on his heel and leaves the room without another word. Not that he needed to say anything more, Quentin cannot deny anything the man said to him. He was right on every point.

Quentin had seen the way Peter started to look at him, but he did nothing to stop it. No instead he encouraged it, loved every second those eyes were focused on him and him alone. He all but took over the kid's life for the last few months, kept him from friends his own age and the life he should be living. He never should have had to worry about a grown man, never should have been the one there emotionally supporting him.

He was needy and soaked up all the attention and every moment he had with Peter like a dying man goes to water. Why wouldn't Peter get used to that and want more? To have someone there that hangs on your every word? It is no wonder he started to develop feelings. But were they real? Or were they just a sad reflection of Quentin's own?

Had he pushed his feelings on the innocent and inexperienced teen? Quentin gets up from the bed and runs to the bathroom and leans over the toilet as he dry heaves at the thought that he had inadvertently twisted Peter into feeling something for him he would have never felt otherwise.

What if that was all this was? Something he created with his own perversion? Had he tainted him with his base desires? 

Before Tony stormed in the thought had never crossed his mind, but now it's there and won't leave. How could he do this? To Peter of all people! 

He empties his stomach until there is nothing left and he still feels sick. Because he is sick in the worst of ways. He flushes the toilet and drags himself to his feet moving over to the sink and splashes water over his face. He looks up in the mirror and doesn't recognize the man he sees staring back at him.

His hair is wild, face drained of color, with a sickly look about his eyes. Is this who he really is underneath it all? Is this the man he became without Gaea there to keep him from going astray? Was he ever worthy of her light in the first place? He sure as hell hasn't been acting like a Champion. He's a disgrace to his order in the worst of ways and it's fitting that the line should end with him.

Before he realizes it he's slammed his fist into the mirror cracking and splitting apart his reflection. His broken reflection stares back at him as blood slowly drips from his knuckles onto the floor. That's what he is, a broken, desperate man. 

He steps backwards sliding down the wall until he is sitting on the cold tiles of the bathroom floor, eyes seeing nothing as he becomes trapped in his own head. His thoughts cycle darkly replaying his every mistake with Peter. Memories that once brought joy grow dark and sinister. Tainted. By his own hand.

He'll never know now if what he felt from Peter was real or something he coerced into being with his willful blindness. He was so desperate for something more, in the darkness of night he scarcely let himself wonder what if...? And now he'll never know. 

For Peter's sake he must push him away, it was never meant to be. All of Quentin's people are long dead, how could he have been so delusional to think he could find a connection here? A connection with a lonely kid who never wanted more than to help, who never asked to be dragged down in the mud by a man who should have been a mentor, a friend.

Nothing more.

He had promised to never hurt Peter, to watch out for him always, and he turned around and became the very thing Peter needed protection from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo.....that happened. 
> 
> Yeah originally wanted to do this a nicer way but then I realized there was no way in HELL Tony would be okay with any of this once he found out, which he totally would because he's Tony. 
> 
> ~~~~Annnd he came in like a wrecking baaaall~~~~
> 
>   
Sorry, not sorry.  
#itwillgetworsebeforeitgetsbetterbutitwillgetbetterIpromise


	18. Stay Away

Peter is high on life the next morning after his birthday. He wakes up with a smile already curving his lips as memories from last night fill his mind. 

It was perfect, every moment of it. He toys with the pendant around his neck idly as his face heats just thinking of the man who had given it to him. Of what it might mean. Before he can second guess himself he concentrates and fills the room with gentle green light as he activates its magic.

He clutches at his stomach as a wave of nausea hits him over the connection. He doesn't know what he expected to feel on the other side but this wasn't it. Concern fills him with an overwhelming sense of despair, sadness, misery and more jumbled feelings he can't untangle enough to know what they are crashing into him over their connection. 

He jumps out of bed with his phone in his hand and dialing before he gives it conscious thought. It rings. And rings. And rings.  
It feels like an eternity goes by before Quentin answers.

"Are you okay???" Peter demands as soon as he hears the connection go through. 

"Peter." Quentin's voice is wrecked, Peter has never heard him sound so bad before. Not since he nearly vanished from this universe anyway, the thought of something that wrong has Peter panicking. 

"Iwantedtoseehowyouwerebutitwassobadanditscaredme." Peter talks so fast it comes out as one word, he takes a deep breath and tries again sure that the other man didn't understand him. "You feel so-so awful! What's wrong? Are you okay? Please talk to me."

"M'sorry Peter. Sick." Quentin sounds like he's choking to get the words out. "Just sick, must've ate something bad. It's ok, I'll be ok."

"Are you sure? I could call someone or come over?"

"No!" Quentin shouts into the phone with such intensity it scares Peter who wasn't expecting it. "No," Quentin repeats much softer, "Sorry, I don't want you to see me like this. Please stay at home, I'll be fine here. I just-I just need to sleep it off, get it out of my system."

"If you're sure..." Peter reluctantly agrees, "But you'll call someone if you get worse promise?"

"I promise Peter, but don't worry about me please. I'll get over it." He sounds so sad and resigned across the line. He must be really sick to sound so awful, Peter feels bad for him.

"Okay. I guess-I guess I'll let you go get some rest. Let me know when you're better okay?"

"I will, just-maybe don't check on me with, with you know for a while. I don't want you to feel this. Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah okay, sure. Don't worry about me, just concentrate on feeling better okay?" Quentin hums an agreement and ends the call. 

The good mood Peter had woken up with is banished and through the rest of the day he worries about how Quentin is doing. He just can't help it. He tells himself he shouldn't worry, Quentin will be fine. Normal people get sick, just cause Peter hasn't since he got bitten doesn't mean it's anything to freak out over.

He checks his phone religiously throughout the day but no messages, he tells himself that Quentin must have just taken his advice and gone to sleep. Yeah that's probably it. 

It is not until he's laying in bed that night that he wants to break his word and check on Quentin with the pendant, but he said he wouldn't. He's just so worried, this is the first time the man from another universe has been sick since he came to this world. 

Peter rolls over and hugs his pillow to his chest wishing it were Quentin and that he could give him comfort instead. He'll be fine, he's at Avenger's headquarters after all. Even if it somehow turned serious there is no better place for him to be in the world. That realization goes a long way to soothing his worries allowing him to fall into a fitful sleep. 

He wakes up in the morning to the sound of a notification on his phone. He unlocks it and sees a message from Quentin:

**still sick but a little better dont worry**

Normally the man writes text messages with perfect grammar and punctuation, he must be still feeling awful to not bother. Peter types out a reply wishing him well and hits send but gets no reply for the rest of the day.

This goes on for nearly a week driving Peter sick with worry in his own right. He texts Tony asking how Quentin is doing on the fifth day and if he's any better but his response doesn't make a lot of sense and is very vague.

**Don't worry, he's being handled.**

Whatever that is supposed to mean. Handled? That's a weird way of saying he's being taken care of, but Peter lets it go somewhat used to the eccentric way with words Tony has. If Tony already knew about it that's good right? That must mean Quentin has been getting any help he might need at least. Although on the other hand, if it was bad enough for him to tell Tony it is worrying, the man isn't well known for being one to reach out when he needs help; it must have been bad for him to reach out. 

Or maybe he was just listening to Peter and asked for help before it got worse, Peter shakes his head. It does no good for him to worry about the why's and the what if's, what matters is Quentin isn't suffering alone. There are so many good people there to help him out.

It is not until the end of the first week that he gets a call from Quentin, he isn't ashamed that he answers it before it finishes the first ring.

"Hey." Peter answers, relieved at finally being able to hear Quentin's voice again after a week of silence.

"Hi Peter." He still sounds so down, but not a quarter as bad as he had a week ago.

"Wow you're sounding much better. You are doing better right?" 

"Yeah, it's getting better but I called because I don't think I'll be up for our patrols for a while and our...meetups are out of the question."

"That's okay, what matters is you get better. I'll be fine on my own, was fine before you came along so don't worry." There is a heavy silence on the line for a time then a soft sigh probably not meant for Peter's ears.

"Yeah, I know you will be." The way he says it is. . .off. Like they are having two different conversations, but that might just be because the other man is so exhausted from getting over being sick. "I might not-I won't be around for a while. This. This sickness I have? It might be something more, maybe something to do with not being of this world, but I'll be staying at the Sanctum for the foreseeable future while I work through this."

"Oh." Peter can't hide the disappointment in his voice, he had hoped this call meant he was doing better. He had been looking forward to spending more time with the other man especially after the magical night they had shared on his birthday. He's being selfish and he knows it, Quentin's health and well being are more important. He's sure they'll have plenty of time to catch up after he gets a clean bill of health.

"Okay," Peter says, pushing away his disappointment and instead tries to put as much cheer as he can in his voice for the man suffering on the other side of the line. He knows how much their meetups meant to the other man, no doubt he is just as sad, if not more sad that he won't be able to make it for what might be a long time. "Don't worry about it, just focus on getting better!" Peter tries with false cheer but it falls flat.

"Goodbye Peter." Quentin's tone as he says it is so final it sets warning bells off in his head but before he can question it the other man ends the call leaving Peter listening to silence.

**********************

Quentin feels sick to his stomach lying to Peter with partial truths, but he can't bear to say it. Some brave hero he is, too scared to even admit what is going on. He doesn't know if it would be better to confess and hear the young man's rage and hurt betrayal over lying and hiding away until Peter realizes he's being, what is the term? Ghosted?

Either way it'll hurt him. Either way Quentin is in the wrong, but the thought of telling Peter the truth and watching what little respect and care for him die in his eyes? He couldn't bear it. It's better to just let the emotions fade from neglect. Over time Peter will move on, after all they hadn't properly started anything.

Maybe he'll be able to discount it as a strange phase and move on as if it never happened. Perhaps they can go back to what they had before Quentin had ruined it. 

Quentin packs up his things taking care to not look at the pictures as he puts them away. It is not long before he has his meager possessions packed and he looks back at the empty room devoid of the warmth of life Peter had brought to it. He has no one to blame but himself for this. 

He took a precious gift and with his greedy hands and he broke it. Wanted more than he deserved, reached too high and brought the ceiling down around him destroying all that he built. A relationship built upon a foundation of lies will always be destined to crumble, and oh how he lied. He lied to himself every night about how he felt, lied to Peter with every look that meant more than it should have.

He turns around and leaves the room as empty and hollow as the hole in his chest where his heart once beat. He walks out of the Avenger's headquarters saying not a word of goodbye to anyone, stealing away like a thief in the night. He flies up into the sky sparing but one look towards Queens and the one thing he's wanted more than anything else since he stepped foot in this universe. 

Towards the one thing he cannot have.

He turns back around-turns his back on Peter and flies off to the Sanctum on the other side of the world. As far as he can get from temptation.


	19. There's Got to Be More To This

A month passes without a single word from Quentin, not even a simple text letting Peter know he's okay. He asks Tony about it but he would have better luck talking to a brick wall with how tight lipped he is whenever Quentin is brought up. This whole thing stinks of something more.

He just knows something else is going on, the only ones who know anything aren't talking. In fact, Tony's jaw clenches as if he's fighting to hold back angry words whenever the man from another universe is brought up. The two of them used to be on such good terms, rivaled only by Peter's own relationship with Quentin. 

Just what the hell happened? What aren't they telling him? He had briefly thought that when he turned 18 they'd start treating him like an adult and stop hiding things from him. He's been to space and fought Thanos for crying out loud! There is no reason for them to still treat him like he needs protecting from the harsh truths of the world!

What hurts the most is that Quentin is doing it. Out of all of them he was the only one who really treated him like a full fledged adult in his own right. He had never babied him before, for him to do it now? It stings. 

Especially after his birthday celebrating his adulthood. What on Earth could be so bad that he'd turn face like this? Did he regret giving the pendant to Peter? Did he change his mind and now is too scared to face him?

Peter stopped buying the story of hanging out with the wizards when Dr. Strange blew that cover story himself when Peter had called him up wanting him to look at the magic in the pendant he wears. When Peter asked how Quentin was doing, if they had figured out what was wrong with him the Sorcerer Supreme looked at him with open confusion on his face.

"There's nothing wrong with him. At least not medically, nor magically anyway. Anything else is outside of my area of expertise." Peter wants to say he was surprised, but deep down his instincts had been telling him something was going on and his instincts haven't been wrong yet.

Peter changed the subject back to the pendant and Dr. Strange discarded the odd question from his mind infinitely more interested in the magical device around Peter's neck. Peter explained how it works when he uses it and lets the other man examine it and cast a few spells to decipher the enchantments Quentin had placed upon it.

"Fascinating, the enchantments won't work by any will but your own. It is similar to the spell I created so that the bracers would be bound to Quentin, quite impressive that he managed to copy my work and repurpose it to work for someone who lacks any magical ability. I didn't think such a thing would have been possible. In fact, the way in which he worded the spell is that so it would not work even for him." Dr. Strange gives Peter a long look almost as if he's looking at him with his other worldly sight and examining his aura.

Dr. Strange hums thoughtfully to himself but withholds sharing whatever he saw when he looked at Peter much to his annoyance. Dr. Strange leaves via a shimmering portal not long after that leaving Peter with more questions than he answered with his visit. Which is par for the course when dealing with the mysterious Sorcerer Supreme.

That night Peter breaks his word, because why should he keep it when Quentin has clearly been lying to him? He activates the magic and instead of warmth his chest grows cold. Sadness, self hatred, guilt, and loneliness floods his system from the other man. It makes the anger Peter held evaporate to instead be replaced with concern. 

Why is Quentin suffering so much? The intense feelings of illness he had felt last time he used it are absent, so he's not sick anymore. Then why is he hiding on the other side of the world feeling so awful? It doesn't make any sense!

He knows Peter would be there for him, no questions asked if he needed him. Is it that he doesn't want to see Peter specifically? Is he hiding from me? Why, why would he do that?

The entire time they have known each other they've never fought, never argued, never done anything hurtful to each other. What could have changed so much to have this happen? Is it the pendant and it's powers?

Has Quentin been suffering all along and hiding it from Peter to spare his feelings? Peter doesn't think that is it, doesn't feel right. Or maybe the other man hadn't realized how big of an invasion of privacy it would be until Peter used it when he was sick. 

Does he regret giving it to me? But he can't just take back a gift, so he's hiding instead? Does he not trust Peter to respect his privacy, the very privacy he is currently violating?

With a guilty expression he lets go of the pendant and feels the heavy weight of Quentin's dark emotions lift off his chest letting him breath again.

After all he had set it up to be completely under Peter's control, was very specific in making sure Peter understood that he could not spy on him through it. . .and then he turns around and uses it against him. Peter scrubs a hand over his face, he really messed up if that is the case. 

But wait. No, he would have definitely felt feelings of betrayal if that were the case right? Peter closes his eyes thinking of all the jumbled things he felt but betrayal and hurt were not among them. Instead it was an overwhelming sense of guilt. 

What does he have to feel guilty about? What could he have possibly done that would drive him to the ends of the Earth? What would drive him away from Peter, the person he's closest to in this whole universe?

So many things he doesn't know, but there is one thing he knows for sure and that Tony knows what's going on. He's been really weird this past month, did they have some falling out that drove Quentin away?

What could they even fight about? Tony has been retired from Avenging for a long time now, and Quentin is always so careful and respectful. It's hard to imagine what they could have caused them to have issues with one another.

Unless. . .

Peter's heart races as he thinks about the timing of this all, its too neat. Everything went to hell right after that night. 

Shitshitshit.

Tony knows. There is no way he doesn't, hell he probably got the reservations for Quentin and then when he showed up with Peter? Oh god, no wonder Quentin is as far away from New York as he can get. Peter knows how intimidating Tony can be when he's angry, one of the few baseline humans that can put the fear of God into an actual God.

It's so simple, why didn't he think of this before?! Did Tony find out about their date and freak out? And it was a date, there is no doubt in Peter's mind about that now. Peter angrily kicks off the covers and gets dressed before picking up his phone and dialing Tony, late hour be damned.

"Sup Pete?" Tony answers casually, as if expecting this to be a courtesy call. Well, Peter has a surprise for him.

"We need to talk. Now." His voice quivers with barely contained anger. There is a second of heavy silence before he hears Tony sigh on the other side of the line.

"I'm on my way." Peter can hear the soft sounds of Pepper's voice in the background but can't make out the words before Tony is disconnecting the call. Peter feels a little guilty about dragging Tony away from his family at this hour, but only a little. He should have thought about that before he stuck his nose in Peter's business.

Peter crawls out of his window and paces on the roof top of the apartment building growing angrier by the second. He catches sight of a small figure in a suit blasting towards him at high speed and stops his pacing. He folds his arms and waits as Tony lands on the rooftop and the nano suit melts off him and back into the chest piece.

"What did you do?" Peter demands in lieu of a greeting. 

"Oh hi Peter, I'm fine and you?" Tony says but Peter ignores the jab at his lack of manners.

"Cut the bullshit Tony, what did you do? Cause I know you had something to do with this." Tony stares at him with a guarded expression for a moment before letting out a sigh.

"I was only looking out for you."

"Funny way of doing that, chasing off the person I care about like that."

"It wasn't right Peter, you have to know that. Whatever you feel? Whatever you think you feel? He made you feel that, it wasn't real. It's not real."

"Don't you dare tell me how I feel!" Peter shouts back, "You saw one little thing and made all these assumptions, you don't know anything about us."

"One thing?" Tony's eyes alight with fire, "You think I'd chase him off from one thing, try secretly meeting up with you for MONTHS. Why was it a secret Peter? Did he tell you to keep it a secret?"

"No! It wasn't like that, we just didn't want to tell anyone I guess. We never really even talked about it."

"Oh I'm sure it was implied, maybe he didn't say the words but it was there. He was after you Peter, had been for a long time. Whatever excuse he had for meeting up with you? Underneath it all he had ulterior motives."

"I don't believe that." Peter says firmly, "He never-he never did anything weird. If anything I was the one who was after him."

"Pete," Tony begins softly as if he's talking to his five year old daughter and not the 18 year old man in front of him, "You just think that cause he put those thoughts in your head, I'm not saying he did it on purpose to hurt you, but when a grown man gives you attention and affection like that? It'll make you think things, make you think it's okay when it's not.

"You were a minor when whatever this was started, he never should have put you in this position. I never should have let him get close enough to do this. That's on me."

Peter shakes his head and holds up his hands for Tony to stop talking. To just stop talking for a second while he thinks. 

All the things Tony says are logical, they make sense. If they were about anyone else Peter would believe him, but he can't believe that about Quentin. The man has never been anything other than a paragon of virtue since Peter's known him. Never even seen him lose his temper, to think a man like that could coerce Peter? Unthinkable.

And yet Peter can't deny how his head swims when in the other man's gravity, how he wants to do things he's never thought of before when they are close. Could it possibly be due to something in his otherworldly nature that pulls Peter in? None of them know the true extent of his powers, could he be doing it subconsciously?

Never in a million years would Peter believe the man capable of doing something like that on purpose. He's always been so careful to not over step, push, nor demand anything but what Peter gives freely.

But what if he's not really giving it freely? He's never even thought of a man like-like that before Quentin. Peter grabs his hair and shakes his head trying to shake the thought from his head but he can't get it out once it's dug in. His heart is telling him not to believe it but can he trust it? What if Tony is right? That would explain why he felt so much guilt from Quentin when he's used the pendant.

"Shh, it's alright kid." Tony steps closer pulling the teen in for a hug. "Look, I'm not saying he's a bad guy, I'm not even saying he knew what he was doing. Hell, when I talked to him he seemed really torn up about it, didn't even argue when I told him to back off. That's gotta be good right?"

"I just-" Peter starts hands gripping onto the back of Tony's shirt tightly. "I-I don't know what to think, he-he wouldn't. . ."

"I know kid, and for what it's worth he's doing the right thing in the end. It should have never happened, but we all make mistakes but what matters is that we learn and fix them. I know it hurts, but this is for the best. You both need time apart to get your heads on straight and after that if you want-" Tony chokes on the word with a grimace before trying again, "If you really want _maybe_ he could come back into your life. As a friend." Tony says pointedly.

Tony holds onto the kid who is his son in all the ways that really matter and comforts him as he breaks down. He's bad at this, really bad at this, but he's been getting better. He rubs the kid's back and mutters nonsense into his hair as the kid gets it all out. As much as he hates how He Who Shall Not Be Named for how he just left without an explanation leaving the kid to worry he can't deny how hard it is to be around Peter when he's hurting. How hard it would be to not reach out and give comfort.

After who knows how long Peter calms down from the initial shock and settles into a blank numbness. He can't believe it would turn out this way. He really must be cursed. 

He wipes at his eyes and steps back away from Tony and tells him he'll be okay. He just needs some time to process.

"Sure kid, I get that. You need anything you call me, I'm sure Morgan wouldn't mind more sleep overs with her favorite big bro." Peter smiles at the thought, he's been so caught up in Quentin that he hasn't been spending nearly as much time with her. He loves the little hellion that is very much her father's daughter. 

They say their goodbyes and Peter promises to call if he needs anything before he climbs back in through his bedroom window. He shuts out the cold night air and takes his shirt and shoes off and crawls under his covers emotionally drained. Sleep finds him quickly and thankfully his overworked brain is too tired to dream up any nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are gonna speed back up soon, else this sucker really would end up a 100K monster and it's already the longest story I've ever written. . .even though it was supposed to be a short 6k~ "what if" at the beginning.
> 
> xD


	20. I Can't Forget You

The first few weeks after talking with Tony on his roof Peter goes through the motions of his daily life in a haze. He just can't believe it, can't accept that it's over. That his feelings for Quentin might fade away like the green smoke of his magic. Maybe that was all it was, or maybe it was real. Only time can show which was the truth and which was the lie, he tells himself many, many times.

He feels rung out and hollow, May asks after him but he can't bear to tell her. What would he even tell her? He doesn't know anything anymore. 

Ned is his rock in the coming months, the only one he feels like he can talk to about it who won't pass judgement or have a biased perspective. 

"I don't know man, that sounds pretty far fetched to me." Ned comments with a frown.

"More far fetched than a guy who is able to survive without any food for five years and can fly? Or a spider bite giving me superpowers?" Ned tips his hat at that.

"Okay you have a point. But come on man, has he ever lost control of his powers before that you know of?" Peter shakes his head. "It's not like with The Scarlet Witch. He's been in full control of himself since he was like a baby or something. I don't know Peter, it sounds fishy to me." Peter crosses his arms over his chest and hunches in on himself, he had been thinking the same thing lately.

"I don't know if his powers are different in this universe, maybe they are acting up or something?" Ned points at him with a lego piece in his hand.

"Okay if they were acting up how come no one else wants to jump his bones?" Peter glares at his friend's crudeness.

"Maybe they hadn't been around him enough to get affected, I mean you said it yourself that when he was around he had this-this aura that made you like him. Maybe it's stronger with me because we spent so much time together."

"I don't buy it. He spent months in the monastery or whatever and they didn't start having orgies."

"Gross!" 

"I'm just saying man, it doesn't add up. It's gotta be something else."

"Well, Tony said that maybe I started feeling this way cause he felt that way for me. Like I naturally responded cause he was just so...._him_ but it like, wasn't real? I don't know Ned, I haven't even thought of a guy like that before him. You gotta admit that's a little weird."

"True." Ned says moving his hand to his lips as he thinks, "I mean I know I'm not gay, but if Thor was all lovey-dovey with me? I would think about it. Like there is a point of hotness that surpasses gender I guess."

"I guess. . .but how would I know if that was what it was?"

"Well Thor is off world so you can't try cuddling him and see if it's the same." Peter smacks his friend's arm for the bad joke. "Joking! Joking! Jeez Peter, just trying to lighten the mood."

"I know, I know! I'm sorry this whole mess just has me all twisted up inside." Peter leans back against his bed and looks up at the ceiling. "I just really miss him you know." He looks down when he feels Ned's big hand rest on his knee and is grateful for what comfort his friend can give him.

"Well I guess there really is only one option." Peter perks up giving his friend his full and undivided attention. "You have to wait and see if the feelings you have go away or not. That's the only way to tell for sure. If it was voodoo magic, or like by osmosis or whatever, it would go away right?" Peter nods his head with a serious expression. 

"That makes sense, a lot of sense actually."

"I know I'm amazing, hold your applause." Ned jokes with a smile fanning himself as if he's just done a great thing talking common sense to his friend. Which, to be fair, he did. 

After that day it gets easier little by little to go through his life. He has to trust that one way or another it'll work itself out. It has to. 

The months go on and Peter moves on with his life. With everything going on with him he decides to take a gap year and not jump straight into college after having graduated high school. May is ecstatic to hear his decision and tells him all about the gap year she took and all the crazy things she got up to. His ears are burning by the time he finally gets her to stop talking but he can feel his spirits lifting anyway.

She spent the time traveling and finding herself. Making mistakes and becoming the amazing woman that raised Peter on her own. Finding himself, who he wants to be, what he wants to do outside of being Spider-Man sounds like the perfect distraction from his woes.

Tony has made it more than clear that his way is paid no matter what he decides to do with his life, that alone is a big relief. Before he walked into his living room a few short years ago to find the billionaire sitting on his couch with Aunt May and his life got turned even more upside down he always worried about how he would pay for college later on. He always got top grades, but a full ride scholarship isn't as easy to come by as one might think.

He decided that traveling outside of Queens might be just what he needs and all it takes is one call to Tony and he's got a private jet with a pilot to chauffeur him anywhere in the world he might want to go. Over the next few months he travels throughout Europe with his best friend at his side to keep him company. 

It feels good, no great to go out with Ned and see all the famous sights he's only ever read about in history books. His little world opens up by the day as he interacts with people from all over the world. It doesn't hurt that it is a vacation not only from his regular life but his hero one as well. He is under strict orders to avoid heroics if he can help it, doesn't stop May from oh so helpfully packing his old suit for him anyway. Thank goodness he's flying on Tony's private jet with all the luxuries that entails, he can only imagine how hard it would be to sneak his super suit through customs.

Each day is packed with sightseeing and exploring, he is having so much fun he can almost forget about Quentin. Almost. But he still finds himself thinking about the man in the darkness of night, wondering how he is doing. He misses him. It's not the aching pain it was at the beginning but still there. He pokes at it like a bruise, never letting it heal. 

Not sure if he wants it to.

It's not until he is sitting up eating ice cream with Ned watching some local television show he doesn't quite understand when breaking news interrupts. He sits up straight in his bed, attention riveted to the screen as he reads the subtitles announcing that there has been a 9.8 earthquake in China.

The news cuts to a shaky video obviously captured on someone's phone. It's dark and blurry but the sounds of panic and rumbling ground is unmistakable. Peter watches in horror as cracks rip through the street and up the sides of buildings. The video pans up at a skyscraper that has spider web cracks running up the side of it as it lists to the side dangerously when suddenly a familiar green streak flies in.

Peter's heart is in his throat as he watches the man, who can't be anyone other than Quentin, creates a shield wall of green force against the building holding it up right even as the cracks grow. It is clear he is struggling to keep it up when another gout of green force comes from him hitting the base of the tower filling up the worst of the cracks seeming to fuse the broken side. Peter holds his breath as he watches hoping with everything in him that it will hold.

It holds.

The bright green magics that had brightened the night sky fade out as he releases the shield and the video ends with him streaking out of sight no doubt to try and do damage control elsewhere in the city. Peter lets out his held breath and deflates back against his pillows.

"Oh shit." Ned says mouth open wide alternating between looking at Peter and the T.V. as the news caster goes on talking about the ongoing disaster but neither of them can understand much of what is said. "Did you see that?"

"Yeah Ned, I saw it." Peter says his heart twisting in his chest. He desperately wants to break his word about no heroing and go help but he doubts he can convince the pilot Tony assigned to take them through Europe all the way to China. He mentally calculates how long it would take him to train or swing from the Netherlands to China and he doesn't like the answer he comes up with. There is no way he can make it in time to do more than help with clean up and search and rescue and he has no experience with that and he knows Tony would grill him for running off half cocked.

It's in Quentin's hands now, at least he, out of all the heroes in this world, has the most experience with this type of hero work. The Avengers and the wizards have long been focused on fighting evil doers and stopping unstoppable forces; they have little to no experience with fighting natural disasters. From the stories Quentin had told him Gaea lacked super villains and had an era of peace and as such most of the work Quentin had done as the Champion of Gaea was related to natural disasters.

For once, and only once, Peter is grateful that Quentin had chosen such a far away place to hide away. If he had not been there. . .no doubt the death toll would be unimaginable. Peter puts a hand to his chest over the pendant he still wears and concentrates. The sense of danger is strong, but Quentin is full of determination and focused on his duty.

Peter sends his hope and belief in the other man across the connection earning a wave of surprise. A pleasant surprise to be sure as a wave of gratitude rolls over Peter before he cuts the connection not wanting to distract the other man. He just had to show his support, that he still cares despite everything that went wrong between them. 

Whatever either feels about the other, they are of one mind when it comes to helping and saving people. It's why they were given the powers they have after all. They have a responsibility to help everyone they can, and that includes each other. Whether or not the other man is avoiding him is besides the point. He shouldn't be out there alone, Peter wishes he could be there with him, to swing alongside him and watch his back.

He just plains wishes he could be there with him, disaster or not. The realization isn't a surprise, it has been months and Quentin is never far from his thoughts. The time and space apart did not kill his feelings as he was worried it would. Instead it proved them true.

Peter stays awake the rest of the night watching the news for further updates and periodically checking up on Quentin with the pendant but not sending his own emotions through. He feels the other man push away his own need for rest time and time again as he pushes himself in his efforts to save lives. The man seems a bottomless well of energy though Peter knows once the danger has passed the man will pay the toll of over using his powers.

Peter wakes with a start when he feels a hand on his shoulder. His first sleep fogged thought is that it is Quentin until his brain boots up and he sees Ned's smiling face.

"Wha time issit?" Peter slurs rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand.

"It's noon dude, you've been asleep for four hours." Peter sits up and blinks at the bright room with blurry eyes. "The news says the worst of it is over now. Thought you might like to know, cause well, you know." 

"Thanks man." Peter says meaning it even as he fumbles for his phone to pull up the news. He skim reads an article about how the city only lost a handful of buildings thanks to the timely intervention of Mysterio. Of the buildings that collapsed all had been fully excavated and searched with the aid of the caped hero resulting in only 15 confirmed dead in the city with nearly five million residents. The lowest death toll of an earthquake of that magnitude in recorded history.

Peter closes the article and drops his phone back down on his bed. He reaches out to Quentin with the pendant and can immediately tell the man expended much of his power as he worked through last night and into the morning. He feels drained just being linked with Quentin and if he didn't know any better he would swear the man was taking his energy from across their connection. It doesn't work like that, at least Peter is pretty sure it doesn't. 

He kind wishes it did though. He'd happily give the other man all he had so he could replenish his store of power faster. Peter has seen first hand what the price is for using magic that comes from your life force, had nearly lost the other man to it once before and he never wants to go through that again. Not that Quentin is in such bad shape this time, Peter doesn't get a sense of danger from the other man's condition at least.

In fact, he doesn't get much aside from the general feeling of exhaustion from the other man which is unusual. People are always feeling something, it is in their nature after all. 

Oh.

He must be sleeping, Peter realizes. He hadn't realized it would still work even when the other man wasn't awake, he should have though. It would be a really crappy emergency device if it didn't work if someone was sleeping. How else would Quentin be able to promise answering the call no matter what? Use your head Peter, he berates himself mentally. 

I wonder what would happen if I. . .

Peter concentrates and sends a feeling of peacefulness toward the other man praying it won't disturb the rest he so obviously needs. The bone-deep exhaustion lessens in the other man and a hint of contentment floats across.

Good. He hopes it gives him good dreams too while he's at it, Peter thinks as he cuts the connection between them again. He feels empty without the connection to the other man, it felt so right. Like he found the piece he had been missing only to lose it again. 

"Hey Ned." Peter says turning to his friend who pauses the game on his lap top to look at Peter.

"Yeah man?"

"I'm sure now." Peter announces to his friend who looks at him in confusion before his eyebrows shoot up in understanding. "It's real, I'm more sure of it than I've been sure of anything ever before. You gotta help me make a plan."

"Awesome. Operation get Peter a Boyfriend is back on!" Ned fist pumps in excitement. "You can count on your guy in the chair, well bed, but you know what I mean." Peter smiles at his friend knowing that when they work together there is no stopping them. 

"Okay so here is what we do. . ."


	21. Without You Everything Is Monotone

The steady march of time goes on since the day Quentin turned his back on Peter and fled like a coward. One month, then two pass, but they might as well be years for how it feels to the man from another universe. He keeps himself busy helping to strengthen the defenses on the Hong Kong Sanctum and when he's not doing that he spends his time flying over the streets helping those in need that he stumbles upon.

Despite filling his days with activities they pass slowly as the man falls into a deep depression. Some days he struggles to get out of bed, what does he have to look forward to after all? He's all but banished himself as far away from the one person who means the most to him. He has no support here to help him through this, nor does he want it. This is his penance, nothing less than he deserves.

When he first banished himself he would get periodic calls and texts from some of the Avengers wishing him well but over time those dropped off when he did nothing to encourage conversation. By the end of the first six months no one bothers to even try anymore, be that because they went off world like Thor, or that they just got busy with their own lives. Quentin is out of sight and out of mind, he doesn't blame them for forgetting about him. 

He declines all requests to be interviewed and has no comment when a journalist does manage to track him down asking about his sudden relocation. He merely says that there are people here that need his help too and leaves it at that. Rumors fly about a falling out between him and the Avengers, but those quickly fade away as more interesting news takes priority. 

He is doing good here and it would be fulfilling if he were doing it under different circumstances. After the incident in Sokovia the Avengers dared not step foot on foreign soil, too afraid of backlash, but Quentin has no such qualms. He had kept himself apart from them from the beginning and his solo heroing strengthens that fact each night. He takes care to avoid anything resembling politics or warring parties and only flies the night sky to help the common man and woman. Saving people from fires, car accidents and on one eventful night preventing disaster after an earthquake rips through a nearby city.

That night changed things for Quentin, long he had thought to never hear from Peter again. No doubt his flight half way across the world had hurt the young Avenger and as such he would be mad at Quentin for running like the coward that he turned out to be. All his talk of being there for Peter and yet he stole away like a thief in the night lest he steal the young man's heart as well. A heart not meant for his dirty hands.

He had just finished snaring the crumbling side of a building ensuing it would not topple down hurting those within and out when he feels it. Feels Peter. His hand flies to his chest where he could feel the warmth of Peter from within, something he was so sure to never feel again-he didn't deserve it after all. He stalls in mid air for a moment as feelings of encouragement and pride come across their connection.

He allows himself one beautiful moment to bask in Peter's warmth before he flies off to save the next building. Peter cuts their connection once more but Peter's warmth in his chest stays with him through the long night of rescuing and preventing total disaster from occurring. 

Hours later when he's done all that he can he turns over the job to the response teams as the exhaustion of using his powers non-stop for the first time in many years hits him. Covered in dirt and dust he flies back to his room at the Sanctum, the sorcerers bow in gratitude as he passes by them. He is too tired to speak and merely nods his head at the bald monks in acknowledgement taking no detours on the way to his room.

He opens his door and kicks it shut behind him lightly with his foot as he works on the hooks that hold his cape detaching them and letting it fall to the floor sending a cloud of dust into the air. With fingers numbed by fatigue he struggles with the rest of his suit until he is left just in his under suit which is blessedly dust free thanks to the air tight seals on his armor.

He doesn't spare a glance, nor even a thought to the mess on his floor and instead all but falls onto his bed as exhaustion overtakes him. He used a lot of power today, and kept using it. He will pay the price for that later when he wakes up but for now what he needs is rest. It is only seconds after his head hits the pillow that sleep overtakes him. 

Nightmares that have been his companion nearly every night since his world was lost don't come that night. Perhaps even they are too tired to torture him. 

Quentin awakes 8 hours later feeling surprisingly okay. He had expected to still be running with the low battery light warning blinking, but instead greets the late afternoon light feeling somewhat human. The man knows he spent too much energy to be feeling anything any better than the walking dead but he doesn't waste any energy worrying about it and instead accepts the gift for what it is.

After that night a small blossom of hope that he had thought dead and buried stubbornly peaks it's pedals through the barren soil of his heart. Peter was only giving a fellow hero comfort, it was nothing more than that. Any one of the Avengers would have done the same for a fellow compatriot, he tells himself but his stubborn heart refuses to accept it as truth. 

Over the coming weeks he does all that he can to stomp it back out, but it refuses to die. Like a weed it keeps popping back up despite silence from their connection. Quentin forces himself to return to the routine he's fallen into and another month goes by, 8 in total since he last saw Peter, and then everything changes again.

He's sitting at his desk with a lamp on as he pours over his notes and books on Cantonese. He's already learned many basic words that are useful for rescuing and helping people but he wants to understand better so he can do more. After all, the way things are looking? This could very well end up being his new home for the foreseeable future.

He feels a presence in his chest calling for him, something he had hoped to never feel and it shocks him to his core. All this time Peter had not used the pendant to call him, because why would he? He could call a dozen other people to help him in New York alone. He gets a sense of urgency and need from across their connection and his heart almost stops in fear.

How bad must it be for Peter to call out to him after all this time? He throws his door open and flies to the first sorcerer he can find and asks to be sling ring'd to Peter. He pinpoints the location on a map for the man having a crystal clear location from his connection to Peter. The man is reasonably surprised by Quentin's urgency when Quentin had spent the last 8 months wandering their halls more a kin to a ghost than a man-but he is of the sect and doesn't waste any time questioning Quentin, instead he concentrates and opens the portal and Quentin flies through without even a word of thanks in his urgency.

He comes out the other side of the portal in a large building, perhaps some sort of warehouse. He holds his hands out with whirling clouds of his magic at the ready as he scans the area looking for what trouble could have caused Peter to call for him but the area appears empty save for the young man in question standing in the middle of the open space. He's not even in his Spider-Man suit, instead dressed normally in jeans, a nerdy T-shirt with an unbuttoned plaid shirt over it.

"Wow, you got here a lot faster than I planned. I guess I should have thought that you might get help from the wizards. Oops." Peter comments nervously, completely throwing Quentin for a loop not understanding what is going on. He expected to come upon the scene and find the young man in a dire situation, in desperate need of backup not standing casually in an empty building.

"What's going on? Are you okay?" Quentin questions eyes still darting around the area checking for unseen dangers. Maybe they are in a safe space now, but whatever caused Peter to call out to him could be nearby.

"We need to talk." Peter says rolling his shoulders and straightening his posture as if preparing to walk through fire. Quentin releases the power in his hands as he touches down on the ground a few feet in front of Peter warily. Peter stares at him for a moment before frowning.

"You weren't ever going to come back were you?" Oh. Quentin's eyebrows raise not expecting the danger he felt to be about _this_. He might have preferred monsters and bullets. "If I hadn't called out for you what would have happened? Would you have gone through the rest of your life as if everything we shared never happened?"

"Peter-" Quentin starts reaching out then snatching his hand back as if burned. He doesn't deserve to give comfort after all that he's done. Peter takes a step forward anger glittering in his eyes and it takes everything in Quentin to not take a step back. He has every right to be angry, whatever Peter has to say he needs to face it like a man. 

"You would have wouldn't you?" Quentin bows his head in acquiescence whispering a 'yes' knowing full well that Peter's keen hearing will catch it. "Self-sacrificing bastard." His tone doesn't match his words, he says it too gently and it gives Quentin pause. When he feels a warm hand touch the side of his face, not in the form of a blow but a gentle caress that makes his brain short circuit. Peter tilts his head back up with his fingers and when Quentin meets his eyes the anger is nowhere to be found. What he sees in those big brown eyes leaves him breathless.

Love. 

"Wha-" Quentin starts confused but is silenced by Peter's finger on his lips. His lips burn at the intimate touch, the likes of which he has not felt for long years.

"No you're going to listen. You had all this time to talk to me, to tell me what is going on with you. With us. And you wasted it. It's my turn now." Quentin has never heard Peter be so forceful and direct with his words. One of Peter's biggest weaknesses was not speaking up for himself, it seems during their time apart he's learned how to. Quentin nods minutely as Peter takes his finger away leaving his lips bereft of his warm touch. 

"We never talked about this, about us. I understand why you left how you did, but it was a dick move. Leaving after my birthday? After promising to be there for me? After giving me a part of you? I was really messed up for a while, more messed up than my normal anyway. But I get it. I don't like it, but I get why you did it.

"How it happened is an argument for later, no matter how it was done it had to be done. I understand that now. There was no other way to find out if the connection we have, the feelings we have are real." Peter licks his lips pausing for a moment as if psyching himself up before he breathes out eyes full of determination.

"Well I've had time and my feelings? How I feel about you? It hasn't changed. I like you Quentin." Quentin scarcely dares to believe his ears. His heart lurches in his chest hearing words he dared not wish for in the light of day. Peter looks at him expectantly, Quentin swallows his throat suddenly dry. He opens his mouth and struggles to get out the words he has been hiding in the depths of his heart for longer than he cares to think about.

"I-I like you too Peter." The moment the words leave his mouth it feels as if a great weight has lifted off his chest. After so long of denying the truth and turning a blind eye to his feelings finally admitting them out loud is a relief. Peter's eyes widened at his admission, as if he hadn't known all along how the older man had felt about it.

And maybe he didn't, and the fault lies entirely with Quentin. 

"I-I should have told you. Before I-you deserved to know, but I was a coward." Quentin admits shame coloring his being, how could he leave Peter without telling him the truth? "I didn-" Quentin shakes his head choking on his words, "I never meant to hurt you, of everyone you are the one person who should never be hurt and to do it by my own hands? I don't deserve your care."

"Maybe you don't." Peter says, Quentin bows his head in agreement but once again Peter tilts his chin up with a gentle hand. "But that doesn't change how I feel about you. Even when I was so angry I could barely sleep? I still missed you."

"I missed you too, every moment of every day." Quentin says, voice barely more than a whisper. His hand shakes as he reaches up giving Peter time to pull back, but ever the brave one out of them he doesn't. He covers the hand on his cheek with the lightest touch he is capable of afraid that Peter is a dream that will disappear if he touches him.

Peter's smaller hand feels deceptively fragile under his own larger hand. He knows the young Avenger is stronger than him, hardier, and not easily broken, but like this he seems so delicate. Quentin feels like a lumbering oaf with his bulk next to the lithe younger man, afraid to blunder further and hurt him both physically and emotionally. 

Again. 

He needs not worry because in the next moment Peter is crashing into him and squeezing for all he's worth as he throws himself into Quentin's arms. At first Quentin stands there in shock before slowly wrapping his arms around the smaller man and holding onto him just as fiercely. 

He breathes in the smell of Peter's hair feeling the knot in his chest loosen at the familiar scent. He breathes in deeply taking as much of it in as he can, wanting to surround himself inside and out with the younger man now that he's allowed. He had always stolen little wisps of him but this is the first time he's being given permission and he's reveling in it. Like a kid who snuck pieces of cake at night only to wake up and be gifted the whole thing in the morning. 

Peter's fingers dig into the back of his armor and Quentin can feel it flexing under the pressure. If he were not wearing it he knows he would have fingerprint bruises in his back from how hard Peter is clinging to him.

He wishes he weren't wearing it. 

He wishes that he could have tangible proof of this moment, proof of how Peter feels for him. Quentin is holding on as tightly as he can in return but lacking super strength there is no danger of hurting the younger man, something he is very grateful for in this moment. 

As they cling to one another for long minutes Quentin feels tears well up in his eyes and his breathing becomes ragged as the emotion of the moment overcomes him. He squeezes Peter tighter against his body as the first hiccuping sob escapes his lips. He almost lost this, lost Peter. If it were not for the younger man's bravery he could have very well lived out his life in regret never knowing what he turned his back on, what they could build together.

"I'm so sorry." He whispers into Peter's hair when he feels the other man's breathing get a little ragged as well. He kisses the side of Peter's head in apology. "I never-Oh Peter I missed you so damn much." 

Peter pulls back enough for Quentin to see his eyes are red rimmed as well. Peter's lips quirk into a smile despite his unshed tears and that is all the warning Quentin has before Peter closes the distance between them and seals their lips in a kiss.

Light flares around them as their lips meet but Quentin pays it no mind as his eyes close and he focuses on the feeling of Peter's soft lips against his own. He moves his lips against Peter's gently wanting to savor the velvet feeling of their first kiss. 

It's perfect, better than Quentin could have ever imagined, and he had imagined it many, many times during dark, lonely nights. The way his smaller body fits against him, complimenting him as if Peter is his missing piece. How did he survive so long with the Peter shaped hole in his heart? He feels complete in a way he has not felt in a long, long time.

Peter presses in even closer wanting more, Quentin tilts his head changing the angle so there is no space between them. Their lips slide together increasing their connection. 

His lips part slightly as he sucks in a tiny gasp of breath at the rush of feeling as Peter's lips move against his own causing the teen to part his own as he lets out a quiet gasp of his own. They stand there just breathing into one another for a moment, letting their air, their feelings, mingle between them before Quentin loses what little control he has left and presses back in for more.

Peter's lips part wider in surprise and Quentin wastes no time taking advantage of it. He opens his mouth against Peter's and brushes the tip of his tongue against Peter's parted lips wanting, needing a taste. There is a sound of metal crinkling and a sharp pressure on his back as Peter grips Quentin's back with force in surprise at the sensation of Quentin's tongue against his lips. Quentin takes that as his cue to do it again, and again licking small stripes along Peter's lips until Peter's own tongue peaks out to shyly lick at Quentin's own.

A moan escapes his lips when Peter's tongue meets his own for the first time. Peter shyly pulls his tongue back for a moment but Quentin gives chase. He licks into Peter's mouth enticing the teen into meeting him with his tongue again.

He can feel Peter's desire building alongside his own as he gets braver and braver and their tongues meet for longer and longer. He runs his hands through Peter's hair eliciting a sound from the other man's throat that makes him go weak at the knees to hear and know he's the cause of it. That Peter is feeling like this because of him. 

He feels humbled that he has this effect on Peter, even as Peter has just as much of an effect on him-if not more. They slowly explore more and more of each other as their kiss deepens and they grow bolder. Their tongues meet again and again but there is no frenzied rush to their movements, each content to slowly get to know one another in a new way. This is brand new territory for the both of them, and Quentin feels no desire to rush and instead wants to take his time learning this side of Peter. 

Quentin slows down the kiss even more and slowly leans back stealing a dozen tiny kisses along the way not wanting it to end just yet. Just one more, and then another which turns into three and before he knows it Peter has leaned back in the rest of the way and begins to explore Quentin in turn. 

The hands that had been holding on so tightly gentle and move up Quentin's back and he's never cursed wearing the armor more than in this moment. He wishes he could feel Peter's hands against him, to feel the warmth of his touch as they kiss. As if sensing Quentin's frustration Peter reaches up to run his own fingers through Quentin's hair.

The double sensation of Peter's mouth on his and his fingers running through his hair is too much for Quentin who lets out an indecent sound before pushing back from Peter. He pants catching his breath as he stares into Peter's eyes and has to fight with everything in him to not lean back in and take those kiss swollen lips again, especially with how wrecked Peter looks. His eyes are heavy lidded, his hair is a complete disaster from Quentin's handiwork, and his chest is heaving in time with Quentin's own from the intensity of the kiss.

And he's glowing. Literally glowing. Quentin looks down at his own hand and sees the same bright rainbow of colors coming off of him. He stares for a moment, brain refusing to process it until suddenly he understands something he should have known from the very beginning.

"Oh."

He stumbles backwards as his knees give out on him, but even heady from their first kiss Peter's reflexes are too good to let him hit the ground. Strong hands grab onto his forearms catching him and gently guiding him back so that he is sitting on the ground. Peter sits down next to him, his mouth opens and closes a few times as he finally notices the glow around them both. He stares at his hands in wonder twisting them this way and that watching as the rainbow of color grows dimmer and dimmer before fading away.

He looks at Quentin with wonder and questions in his eyes but Quentin is beyond words. This is unthinkable. Impossible. A fairy tale dream. 

And yet in his heart he had known it all along, had felt the spark of something more between them almost since he laid eyes upon the scared youth fighting bravely in a war for survival he never should have even been a part of. But how could this be? His people, their sparks-that doesn't happen here. Can't happen with the people of this universe. It was unique to the children of Gaea, and yet Quentin has found his spark here. With Peter.

"Was that...?" Peter asks though the way he asks it says he already knows the answer as well as Quentin does. There can be no denying the feeling of perfect completeness they shared as they had their first kiss. There could be no denying the pull they have felt for one another since the very moment they met. 

There could be no doubt after witnessing the radiant light of Gaea's blessing.

Quentin reaches out and grabs Peter's hand within his own bringing it to his lips and presses his lips against Peter's knuckles in a long kiss full of reverence. He holds Peter's hand to his mouth for a long moment before bringing it to his chest and laying it over his heart. 

The heart that beats for Peter and Peter alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3 :3 :3 :3 :3 :3
> 
> Surprise this was a soulmates fic in disguise all along! Hehehehehehehe I'm such a sucker for those. . .bout time I finally wrote one. hehehehehehehe
> 
> So not quite 80k words to get to a first kiss haha. Shame on me :D :D :D :D


	22. Best Laid Plans

"So like I had this plan and it was a great plan." Peter starts without preamble after long minutes of silence between them after their first, perfect kiss. They had sat on the ground hand in hand just staring at each other afterwards in awe of what had happened. "Like I wasn't sure if you'd be on board with trying so I was gonna convince you to explore Venice with me and I don't know-like start over sort of? We could have just went around like two normal people who liked each other and see what happened."

"That sounds perfect." Quentin says rubbing his thumb along the back of Peter's hand still in awe that he's allowed this now. Peter blushes and squeezes Quentin's fingers in his hand.

"I guess, well. So." Peter struggles to say it, he still hasn't really accepted what has happened between them to be perfectly honest. "So like, we're um you know. That."

"You are my other half. From the moment I first met you I knew there was something special about you." Quentin tells Peter in a soft voice, "The better I got to know you the stronger that feeling grew, but I never thought it would be possible. That, that we could share this." Quentin gestures with their joined hands. 

"I was worse than a fool to run from you, to run from this. If I had only known. . ." 

"How is it possible anyway? I thought that like, that was something unique to your world?" Peter asks, but Quentin shakes his head not knowing himself.

"It shouldn't be, and yet here we are. There is no denying the truth of our connection, perhaps it truly was fate that brought me here. The reason I never felt the desire to look for the other side of my heart was because it wasn't on Gaea, it was here. With you all along. 

"The universe, the multiverse works in mysterious ways. My being here alone is proof of that, but my connection to you? Goes beyond anything I have ever thought possible. Perhaps it was my destiny, my fate to come here, to find you. To catch you as you fell so that you could in turn catch me."

"So, what now? I gotta be honest with you, I've never-well anything." Peter shrugs helplessly as he is completely out of his element here. "I thought we could like date and stuff? The whole soul mates thing was a big surprise-not a bad one though! But like what's the protocol for this?"

Quentin lets out a huff of laughter at Peter's worrying.

"How about we follow through with your plan? It is such a nice one, be a shame to waste it after all." Quentin smiles fondly at Peter, "The fact that you are my other half changes nothing, there is no protocol to follow. There is no manual for the heart, we make our own rules and you know what?"

"What?" Peter asks.

"I think taking it slow and getting to know each other in a new way sounds perfect." Quentin leans in to press a chastise kiss on Peter's lips before leaning back. "So what do you say we get out of here? As much as I enjoy sitting on the cold floor of an abandoned warehouse with you, we could be more comfortable."

"Oh right!" Peter springs to his feet momentarily forgetting they are still joined hand in hand when he pulls an unsuspecting Quentin half way up with him. "Sorry." He apologizes as Quentin gets the rest the way up on his feet to stand next to Peter.

"Don't be, it always surprises me how strong you are especially with how thin you are." Peter shuffles his feet and looks down at himself, his skinniness compared to all the other heroes he knows has always been a sore spot. Quentin realizes his mistake almost immediately and moves to correct it. He pulls the young man against his chest surprising him as Peter lets out a little 'oof' of air when he collides with Quentin's chest. 

"I like it. I like how strong you are, and how your smaller frame fits against me perfectly. You are perfect Peter, just the way you are. If anything I feel like an ogre standing next to you. Always afraid I'll hurt you, even though I know how tough you really are." Peter pulls back to look up at Quentin who is staring down at him with such tender care in his eyes it almost hurts. But in a good way. 

Peter worries his bottom lip between his teeth drawing Quentin's attention to his mouth. The tender look in his eyes morphs into a hungry one, it makes Peter's stomach flip when Quentin looks at him like that. It almost feels dangerous, but in a good way if that makes sense. He's so inexperienced and new to all of this, doesn't even know what it means when Quentin looks at him like this, all he knows is that he likes it.

He leans up on the tips of his toes and closes the distance between their mouths in a kiss. He might not know much, but he knows he likes kissing Quentin. A lot. It's a little bit scary, a tiny bit messy, but 100% awesome. The older man's lips are so soft, while his beard is a bit rough. The duality of the two sensations working together to make it better rather than counter acting one another. 

Peter hasn't kissed anyone without a beard so he doesn't have anything to judge it by, but he finds he really enjoys the feel of the tiny hairs lightly scratching his face when they kiss. The older man's mouth parts for Peter letting him in to explore with his tongue. He is shy at first, will probably be shy about this for a long time if he is honest with himself, but it doesn't stop him.

It is just so intimate, he feels closer to Quentin than he thought possible when they kiss. He is literally letting a part of Peter inside him-no not just letting, he wants it. Encouraging the younger man to explore more with every little gasp and twitch of his hands on Peter's hips. 

Peter is strong, super strong and has all sorts of cool powers but in the here and now? He's never felt more powerful than when he feels how much of an effect he has on the older man. He, hand to God, actually gets weak in the knees over Peter! That Peter has so much power over him with just a touch, or a kiss?

It's amazing.

It makes him want to push more, to see just how much he can affect the other man, even if he doesn't know yet how to push more. Peter pulls back and opens his eyes to see Quentin with his eyes still closed and his lips just barely still parted from the kiss.

He's beautiful.

Or is it handsome? Men can be beautiful too can't they? Either way he looks amazing but when he slowly reopens his eyes revealing their unearthly blue once more it never fails to make Peter's heart lurch in his chest. The piercing blue of those eyes can see right through Peter, straight into his heart.

What does he see when he looks at me? Peter wonders, he says all these romantic things about me being perfect. Is that what he sees? Peter knows he's far from perfect, but when Quentin looks at him like this? He feels like he could walk on clouds and single-handedly take on Thanos and win.

"Peter." Quentin utters his name as if it were a prayer, as if he too, is amazed that Peter wants him. His large hand comes up to brush against Peter's cheek. He leans into the warm touch letting his eyes fall closed for a moment as Quentin traces his jaw with his hand. The gentle touch of his hand soothes away the rough feeling from brushing up against Quentin's beard. 

"Oh Gaea Peter," Peter's eyes flick back open to look at Quentin. "The way you look. . .if you keep this up we'll never make it out of this building. We'll have to make a bed out of the boxes, hunt rats for food, and make this our new home at this rate." 

"Oh right, sorry." Peter keeps getting distracted by the man in front of him and the fact that he can just reach out and touch if he wants to. Which he does, like all the time.

"Don't be sorry, never ever be sorry about that." Quentin says with a laugh, "But if I have to wear this bulky suit any longer with you...I'll lose my mind." Peter goes bright red as his mind immediately thinks about Quentin outside of his suit. Entirely out of it. He knows the other man didn't mean it like that, but his hormones clearly didn't get the memo.

"Oh, no-I didn't-" Quentin quickly back pedals having seen the look on Peter's face that broadcasted clear as day what the teen had thought he meant. Quentin steps back as if burned and with his hands up in surrender. The stricken look on his face is too much for Peter as he lets out a burst of giggles at the man's overreaction. 

"Very funny." Quentin folds his arms across his chest as he tries for serious but can't hold a straight face as his lips quirk in a self-deprecating grin. "Well that worked to kill the mood, maybe we can actually leave some time today. So what is the next step of your plan?"

"Well we're actually in Venice now and I already have a hotel nearby." Peter admits sheepishly aware of his own boldness in assuming his plan would play out. Quentin's eyebrows raise in surprise, not having expected that.

"You really did plan this all out didn't you?"

"Well," Peter toes at the ground with one of his shoes. "I did have help. Couldn't do it without my guy in the chair." 

"Well he has my thanks for his part in this, he truly is a good friend to have. I'm glad-I'm glad he was there for you when I was not." Quentin's good mood sours at the thought of all that he has put Peter through but Peter won't let him wallow in it. The younger man reaches out and grabs Quentin's hand within his own.

"Well you've got a long time to work on making it up to me. Come on Ned is outside waiting with the car, you can thank him yourself while he takes us to the hotel where we can find you some other clothes." 

**********

Peter sits on the edge of his bed twiddling his thumbs as he waits for Quentin to come out of the bathroom. He had Friday order an outfit for Quentin weeks ago in case his plan succeeded and the man decided to stay with Peter here. They can go out and buy him more later, on Tony's dime of course as he has some serious making up to do for his part in all of this. 

God, he can't wait to see Tony's face when he tells them he ran off his soulmate! 

Peter is still struggling to get it around his head. Soulmates are real and he has one. Holy shit. Maybe that is why he's always had such rotten luck, like his own destiny was making sure his every crush despised him and made his one and only date end in total disaster. 

Well if that is the case he should count himself lucky, cause it will have all been worth it. Already is worth it to have Quentin. 

Which is not to say Peter isn't nervous and scared of making mistakes with something this important when he has zero experience, but if it's fate he shouldn't be able to screw it up too bad right? They already got off to a bad start and found their way back to each other after all. He's probably worrying over nothing, but that's one of his specialties. He's been honing that particular skill all his life and is quite good at it now.

The door opens and Peter's head shoots up to watch as Quentin steps out of the bathroom changed from his suit into the clothes Peter had bought for him. His stomach flips at the sight of the other man wearing an outfit Peter had picked out specifically for him. Not that he had much other choice, but something about it just makes him feel funny in a good way.

He picked out another pair of skinny jeans since he knows Quentin favors tight clothes from always wearing his under suit, a plain blue T-shirt that compliments his beautiful eyes and a light grey zip up hoodie for when they go out. He walks out of the bathroom sans hoodie, they are inside after all, and Peter's mouth goes dry. The shirt is tight around his chest, not obscenely like the ones Tony had picked out had been but, still.

Damn. 

The short sleeves show off his built arms that are almost always hidden away from sight beneath his suit. Peter's eyes follow the lightning pattern scars along his right arm that travel up disappearing beneath the sleeve and wonders how far they go. Do they stop at the shoulder? Or do they slowly fade and branch out over his chest and back? 

He's never really thought about it before, but he suddenly wants to know. Wants to know everything about the other man. His soulmate. 

Peter shakes his head banishing those thoughts once he realizes he's been staring at Quentin while he stands there awkwardly shifting from one foot to another. Peter stands up and walks over to Quentin reaching out his hand to grab Quentin's and pulls him in for a hug. He can feel the tense muscles in the other man's back slowly relax as he holds on.

"Sorry." Quentin says rubbing his hand across Peter's back. "This is all-I had been telling myself for so long that I can't have this, have you. So, it-I don't really know what to do with myself around you anymore." 

"We are taking it slow, remember?" Peter leans back to look up at Quentin who smiles gratefully, "This is gonna be weird, not like bad weird, but you know. It'll be different for both of us. New."

"You're right, I know you are. It is just that-it's hard for me to reach for you sometimes. I have to fight with myself, I don't want you to think I don't want to-because I do, but it is going to take time for me to adjust."

Peter slides a hand up the side of Quentin's face and pulls him down for a gentle kiss. When he pulls away he gives Quentin a bright smile.

"That's okay, as long as you don't run away when I reach for you." 

"Never again." Quentin promises placing a kiss on Peter's forehead. 

**********

They talk late into the night sitting side by side on one of the beds catching up on what they missed while apart from one another. Quentin's end of it is short and sad, he had not accomplished much while he wallowed in misery, while Peter on the other hand took their time apart to do all sorts of wonderful things. The older man turns the conversation time and time again to ask after Peter shying away from darkening the conversation with his woes but Peter is not one to give up easily.

The younger man holds him tight when he finally talks about the depression he fell into, is still in if he's being honest. Which he is, and will always be, honest with Peter from now on. Just look what happened the last time he wasn't?

Peter guides his head down so that he is lying on the smaller man's chest and Peter plays with his hair as he opens up about the darkness he fell into. It's easier for him to talk about it and not have to look at Peter while he talks. The feeling of Peter's fingers combing through his hair keeps the darkness from consuming him. 

Turning his back on Peter, his soulmate-though he knew it not at the time-was on par with the loss of his world. Because Peter is his world now. He lives and breathes for the kid-no man now- had been living for his smiles for a long time. He betrayed Peter, he betrayed himself when he had left. At the time he had thought that he was doing the right thing, that his very presence in Peter's life was a bad thing.

It broke him to think he had hurt Peter, that he could have made him feel things he shouldn't, wouldn't have felt otherwise. He questioned his entire life, his choice in being Gaea's avatar-everything. How could someone who was, by his very design, born to do good be the cause of corrupting a youth? What kind of monster was he without Gaea's guidance to make the choices that he did?

He tells all of this to Peter, who listens quietly not wanting to interrupt lest Quentin stops talking. It is not until Quentin falls silent for a long time that Peter speaks up again.

"I won't lie, you really did hurt me when you left like that. It hurt. I worried about you." Quentin squeezes his eyes shut and moves to get up but Peter's strong hands pull him back down on his chest and hold him there. "I wasn't finished. I don't blame you though, and honestly it was for the best. It made me question myself, something I wouldn't have done if you hadn't-

"If you hadn't left. Maybe I would have had doubts later, maybe this was unavoidable. Maybe it was destiny all along like you said, but you know what? It was worth it." Peter releases his hold and ushers Quentin to look at him with his fingers. He looks into Quentin's sad, guilty eyes as he tells him: "You are worth it."

Quentin looks as though he wants to cry, but not in sadness. Peter doesn't need the magic of the pendant to know what Quentin is feeling in this moment because they both are feeling it. Relief, joy, and thankfulness for the love and support from the other. However they got here, the struggles they went through to get to this point. It doesn't matter because they've made it. 

Together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beep boop struggling with this next chapter a bit so update might be delayed, can have this while y'all wait though! 
> 
> Hope y'all are in the mood for lovely dovey shit and makeouts cause there might be a lot of that in this arc haha. 
> 
> Sorry, not sorry.


	23. When In Venice. . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternate Title: Author writes 8k of fanservice as a reward/apology to those who suffered through 75k without even a kiss xD

After the emotional roller coaster of the day and night both of them ended up falling asleep tangled up in each other. Neither had made a conscious choice to do so, as they simply just drifted off during a lull in their conversation. Quentin wakes up warm and content in a way he has not known for a long time. At first he assumes he must still be sleeping, the harsh reality of his waking world would not allow him to feel so good. He moves to snuggle deeper into his blankets when he feels the unmistakable weight of someone on his chest and his eyes fly open.

He blinks at the unfamiliar surroundings, why isn't he greeted by the blank grey walls of his room in the Sanctum? The sheets and the pillow beneath his head are too soft, too fine to be his. He looks down and sees a familiar mop of brown curls and his heart aches as memories of the night before come back to him.

Peter.

The younger man is using his chest as a pillow, still asleep from what Quentin can tell. Quentin looks down at Peter in wonder, at the second chance he's been given and he swears to make the most of the chance he has been graciously given.

He presses a gentle kiss into the mop of curls as he makes his promise. Peter shifts in his sleep from the contact, Quentin would like to have more time with Peter completely relaxed in sleep but having him awake has its advantages as well. Quentin runs his fingers through Peter's hair and along his back encouraging him to wake up in the gentlest of ways. 

A small hum of contentment comes from somewhere in the mess of curls laying on Quentin's chest as Peter slowly wakes up. His smaller hand slides along Quentin's chest idly for a moment before it pats against him with more force. Peter's head shoots up and he looks down at Quentin in shock and confusion for a moment. Apparently Quentin wasn't the only one surprised by the turn of events that lead them here. 

"Good morning Peter." Quentin's voice is rough, both from sleep and from talking more last night than he had in the last six months combined. 

"Hey." Peter answers with a sleepy smile before leaning over to place a kiss on Quentin's lips. He tries to deepen the kiss but Quentin won't let him so he leans back with a questioning look.

"Morning breath, trust me it's not something you want to experience." Quentin says with a quirk of his lips. "Let me brush my teeth first at least." Peter agrees with a nod before sitting up all the way and stretching with a yawn. 

They busy themselves with getting up and doing their morning routines to get ready for the day. Although it's not routine at all for either of them when they keep stealing looks at one another as they brush their teeth side by side in the bathroom. They both go to spit at once and bump their heads making them both laugh. Quentin gestures for Peter to rinse his mouth first then takes his own turn when Peter is done.

The moment he straightens up Peter is on him giving him a proper kiss. Quentin lets out a tiny squeak in surprise that turns into a pleased hum real quick. Peter pushes him up against the sink in his enthusiasm as he crowds into Quentin's space. Trapped between a hard place and an enthusiastic Peter?

No place he would rather be.

His hands go to Peter's smaller hips and rub the top of other man's hip bones that peak out over his jeans that have slipped down his waist. He could almost cover Peter's whole back with the width of his hands, so small and yet Quentin can feel the powerful cords of muscles under his hands. 

Gaea, is he perfect. Quentin still can't believe his luck to get someone who is so beautiful inside and out. His perfect match. He can only hope that Peter finds him to be as good of a match, but judging by how his hands are wandering up and down his back he seems to like Quentin's body just fine.

Peter pulls back for a breath realizing for the first time that he had backed Quentin up against the sink.

"Sorry, got a little carried away."

"I liked it. Push me against anything you want." Peter blushes beautifully at Quentin's honesty. "It's-how do I put it? It's comforting to know that you can push me around. Makes me feel better to be reminded of the fact that you could knock me on my ass if I ever did something you didn't like."

"Really?" 

"Plus it is really hot." Quentin says with a wink making the teen go bright red. Peter gives him a soft smack on the arm for his teasing. Quentin lets out a long laugh before sobering suddenly.

"I almost forgot what it's like to laugh." Quentin admits, "I don't think I laughed once while we were apart. It feels good, thank you for being the brave one out of the two of us." Peter just pushes him back up against the sink again instead of responding much to the older man's delight.

**************

Once they manage to keep their hands to themselves for more than five minutes they decide to go out to buy Quentin some more clothes. They both don their hoodies and sunglasses even though the chances of being recognized here are low it never hurts to be safe.

They walk hand in hand throughout the streets of Venice going from shop to shop browsing the various wares they find. Peter is excited to see so many small shops selling handmade things. So different from the mega corporation dominated US that he is used to. Quentin follows Peter as he practically skips from shop to shop in his excitement. He enjoys seeing the younger man so carefree and happy.

Which is not to say Quentin isn't enjoying himself in his own right, but the city built on water makes him miss the home he'll never see again. He doesn't let his somber thoughts ruin their day out though, Peter's joy and excitement alone are enough to keep his head afloat. 

The fact that they can walk around openly hand in hand is what Quentin enjoys the most about this place. He never had to hide back on his world, he hates how often he has to do it here. If he had his way he would announce to the world his love for the man next to him. He feels like the luckiest man in the multiverse to have Peter at his side especially after everything he put him through to get to this point.

He knows he can't though. In this world there are people who would hurt heroes and their families if they knew their identities. Not even Tony was safe from that. Quentin had read about what happened to his Malibu house and all the suffering Pepper went through because of someone hell bent on ruining Tony in every way possible. Quentin cannot even begin to imagine what he would do if anyone went after Peter or May.

He has already lost one family; he can't lose another. If he had to burn this world down to save them he would do it without blinking an eye, whatever that says about him? He doesn't care.

A man can only be pushed so far before he breaks, and Gaea help him if something ever happens to Peter. Except she can't, because she too is gone. She had kept him sane after their world was destroyed, and everyone they ever loved was taken from them. If something happened to Peter he would have no one to turn to. 

Sure, he likes the Avengers and the sorcerers, but there is no one on this planet that could help him pull through if the worst were ever to happen. Perhaps Thor would be able to do something, seeing as how they bonded over their lost homes and families, but he's off world perhaps never to return. 

Quentin shakes the dark thoughts and 'what if's' out of his mind. It does no good to worry about things that won't happen. The last champion of Gaea has made it his life's work to keep Peter safe. He will not fail, not ever again. 

Another hour of wandering the streets goes by before they finally happen upon a store that sells clothing. They go up and down the aisles looking through the racks together. Peter grabs things he likes and holds them up to Quentin and either nods or frowns if it will or won't work. 

This goes on for some time until Quentin has an arm full of clothing to try on. He leans in and gives Peter a soft peck before he goes into the changing room to try the clothes on. He goes back and forth modeling each one for Peter who sits in a chair judging them with critical eyes. Quentin feels his cheeks heat as it goes on, not used to having Peter look at him like this. Before when the teen would check him out he was discreet about it. Quick to look away whenever Quentin caught him looking(which was often).

It is easy to tell which are Peter's favorites as his eyes light up and he'll have a soft smile on his face. But when he tries on shorts and a T-shirt meant for a trip to one of the few beaches in the city he gets an entirely different reaction from Peter. 

Quentin isn't body shy by any means but he has had very few occasions to wear such revealing clothing, as the Champion of Gaea he most often wore the vestments of his station. Even at home he favored skin tight pants more akin to the fashion of the women of this world.

He has yet to see men of this world wear such garments, yoga pants they are called here, so he assumes that is something different in their cultures. The closest he has seen has been skinny jeans or the suits the heroes of this world wear. It is a shame he is trying to not stand out because the men of this world are missing out on some truly comfortable clothing options that are available to the women.

When he steps out of the dressing room in the shorts he can't help but feel self conscious about so much bare skin being on display in front of his young partner. He needn't have worried though because the expression on Peter's face is priceless. His mouth drops open comically wide and hangs there open for long seconds as his eyes roam over Quentin's exposed skin. 

"Wow." Peter says scarcely blinking as he stares, Quentin can feel his skin grow hot where those eyes roam across him. "We have to go to the beach, like now. Oh my god." 

"Okay." Quentin agrees. Peter blinks up at him like he is waking up from a trance before clearing his throat. "Think we might need to pay for and drop all this off first though." He teases using humor to cover his embarrassment at being so openly ogled. Not that he doesn't enjoy it, but it has been far too long and he really wants to do this right which means slow and steady. Although he doubts he could turn Peter down if he seriously went after him.

He is only human after all.

"Sorry, you're just so hot it's crazy!" Peter says not helping at all with Quentin's embarrassment. "I was kidding, well okay I wasn't kidding entirely. We definitely have to go to the beach soon, but we can wait for another day. It's better to go in the morning before it gets super crowded anyway. Um, so I think we have enough for now, what do you say we go get something to eat before we head back?"

"I am always ready for food." Quentin agrees, turning around and quickly changing back into the clothes he was wearing before. Peter pays with one of Tony's limitless cards that he was given before they go off in search of food. They don't have to search long before they come across a small restaurant. 

They are seated in a small booth meant for couples and given menus, unfortunately neither of them thought of the fact that they don't understand Italian before they sat down. Thankfully the waiter speaks English and helps them pick out items from the menu before leaving to give their order to the chefs.

Quentin holds Peter's hand across the table marveling that he's allowed to do this now. From the looks coming his way from his partner the feeling is mutual. He isn't sure if he will ever get over the fact that they have been mutually pining for one another for so long and it took such drastic measures for them to finally get to this point. 

"Hey so like this is our first date isn't it?" Peter announces out of nowhere. "Never thought I'd be the kind of guy to have a first date in Venice at a legit Italian restaurant of all places. Awesome."

"It is indeed, very awesome." Quentin agrees entirely giving Peter's fingers a squeeze in his hand. "And so are you." Quentin doubts he will ever tire of making Peter blush. 

They spend just as much time talking as they do eating for once. Making the most out of their first date, neither of them in any rush to leave. Quentin spends a large portion of the time staring at their joined hands in wonder that he's allowed this. Marveling that he can be so lucky to be sitting across from such an amazing, kind, and intelligent person. A person who just so happens to be his missing piece. 

All this time he had never once even thought to search for the male aspect of his heart, he never questioned it. It was not entirely uncommon for his people to only search out one side or the other based on their preferences. In fact, there were quite a few cases of those who ran into their long lost other side after having already started a family and as such their bonds became that of brothers and sisters. 

A bond far greater than that of a normal friendship but lacking the romantic aspect. Quentin had always assumed he would fall into that category, because why would he ever want anyone other than his beautiful wife? She was perfect, their daughter a blessing, and anything more would be greedy would it not? 

Having met and gotten to know Peter, even in such a short time, he can see just how wrong he was. There was never any way he could just feel a friendship with the young man, not with how he makes his heart pound in his chest. Not with how sweetly and tenderly he cares and looks after Quentin. Always going out of his way to go above and beyond to comfort Quentin when he is at his lowest.

It would have been impossible to not fall in love with him. 

They finish their meal and return to the hotel to drop off the clothes before setting out to sightsee for the rest of the day. Instead of how Peter used to show him around Queens and New York they both are exploring together. They see things for the first time together and share a sense of wonder and awe wandering a city that spans the centuries.

The architecture is wildly different from that of the more modern Queens. In fact, the city itself is older than the entire nation where Peter and most of the Avengers are from. It is like walking through an interactive history book, it helps the man from another world feel more grounded in a way. It is hard to make a place feel like home when you don't even know the history, but seeing ancient buildings and feeling the stone of their walls makes it more real for the man. 

Having no plan they simply wander at random stopping for food every so often as enticing smells come their way from street vendors. The light begins to fade as the sun begins to set. They find a pier and watch the beautiful reds and oranges of the sunset over the ocean before returning to their hotel.

Quentin excuses himself to change into one of the garments meant for sleeping. He has tried to sleep in jeans before and has no desire to repeat that experience. He pulls on the pants that are still too loose for his liking but better than jeans by a long shot. He exits the bathroom to find Peter already in bed. 

The older man takes an abortive step forward before he stops himself. Though they had slept in the same bed last night, neither had made a conscious decision to do so. It would be moving more than a little fast to share a bed again so soon.

Wouldn't it?

He walks over to the other bed pointedly not looking at Peter while he gets in the bed. He gets himself comfortable and rolls over on his side facing where Peter lays. He too had rolled on his side to look over at where Quentin lays. Neither of them say anything for a moment, the silence is a heavy one for a time until Quentin breaks it.

"Good night Peter." Peter smiles back at him.

"Good night." Quentin rolls back over knowing it will be impossible to sleep facing where Peter lays just out of reach. He tries valiantly to sleep for long minutes but can feel Peter's eyes on him. It's distracting in the best/worst kind of way. On one hand, he feels loved that the other man would choose to watch him fall asleep, but on the other it makes him wish he could hold Peter in his arms.

The minutes tick by and Quentin is no closer to sleep before he hears the soft sound of blankets rustling. He assumes that is Peter rolling over but then he feels the bed dip behind him and the warm weight of Peter settling in behind him. The older man moves to turn around but freezes when Peter snakes an arm around his middle holding him from behind.

A soft sigh of contentment is breathed out by his ear sending shivers down Quentin's spine. He reaches up covering Peter's hand with his own and laces his fingers through Peter's over his chest. A knot he hadn't realized was in his chest loosens up as Peter holds on to him. He feels Peter shift against him pressing in closer until he is pressed flush against Quentin's back. His breath catches when he feels warm lips press against the side of his neck.

"Peter. . ." He whispers his name like a prayer in the darkness. Twisting around he leans back to look up a Peter as he leans over him. The sight of him is a dream with his hair tousled from his pillow, his pupils wide from the darkness, and his lips just barely parted. The younger man closes his eyes as he leans down pressing a kiss against Quentin's wanting lips.

Quentin squeezes the hand against his chest as Peter's tongue presses against his lips. He is surrounded by Peter on both sides and he eagerly opens up for him wanting him inside as well. It is almost overwhelming to feel Peter pressed against his back as they kiss, almost too much.

And yet he wants more. Gaea help him, he wants more. Wants anything and everything Peter will give him. 

He presses back against Peter and a moan escapes past his lips to be swallowed up by Peter. He allows him just one more moment to enjoy this before he pulls back. 

It is one of the hardest things he has had to do, but if they continued the way they were? The chance of it going further than simply kissing is too great. He won't rush this, not with his young and inexperienced lover. Peter deserves the best of everything the world has to offer; he deserves to be romanced. He rolls over onto his back lessening the contact between their bodies remorsefully. 

"I have nightmares." He warns Peter with a soft voice, "I will probably wake up yelling and disturb your sleep."

"I do too." Peter admits earning a questioning look from Quentin but he shakes his head unwilling to talk about it just yet. Quentin respects his wishes and doesn't press, they have all the time in the world to learn each other after all. 

"If you're sure. . ." Quentin says but Peter just rests his head on his chest in lieu of answering. Quentin wraps his arm around Peter's shoulder and runs his fingers through Peter's curls in mindless patterns earning a hum of contentment from the young man. He feels Peter press a kiss against his covered chest in thanks before he slowly falls asleep with the aid of Quentin's ministrations. Quentin is not far behind him as sleep pulls him under as well.

*******************

_Peter watches helplessly as the concrete roof cracks and then crumbles down on top of him. His hands fly up trying to brace himself and catch one of the large pieces from crushing him. His muscles strain and tear as the whole building comes down on top of him. Darkness surrounds him as the rubble blocks out all light and his panicked breaths echo in his ears._

_He's trapped._

_The air quickly goes stale as he uses up the little oxygen left to him. He hasn't got long before he suffocates, but the way his arms shake he won't have to worry about it. The crushing weight of the building is too much for him to hold out against, soon the last of his strength born of desperation will be gone and the slab above him that has been inching closer and closer will be the end of him._

_Tears stream down his face, he doesn't want to die. Pleasepleaseplease he begs the darkness but knows there is no one coming for him. He is all alone, he'll die under this rubble and they won't even find his body for a long, long time. If ever. _

"Peter!" The sound of his name being shouted shakes him from the nightmare that was almost a reality. He strikes out hard at the weight on him and jumps away before his eyes have finished opening. It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, to see beyond the tomb of concrete and dust. 

When he finally can see past the nightmare he stares in confusion at the unfamiliar room for a moment before it all comes back to him.

"Shitshitshit! I'm sosososo sorry!" He calls out running back over to where he had thrown Quentin across the room in his panic. The older man had hit the wall and fallen to the ground, Peter reaches out and helps him to his feet. "Oh my god! I'm sooooo soooo sorry! I didn't mean to!"

"It's okay." Quentin says, "My mistake for holding onto you when you were struggling. That was really stupid of me, I know better but I panicked watching you struggle and hearing your cries for help." 

"Why are you the one apologizing?! I'm the one that threw you into a wall for crying out loud!" Peter grabs at his hair pulling it in frustration. It's been a long time since he had a nightmare this bad, so of course he would have to have one tonight of all nights. Way to spoil a good thing Parker.

Quentin reaches out and gently pulls Peter's hands away from his hair and pulls them to his face so that he can lay light kisses across his knuckles. Peter can't help but melt a little whenever Quentin does something like this even in his panicked state. When the older man gently tugs on his hands urging Peter closer he is helpless to fight against it. He lets the man pull him into a loose hug, taking care to not make Peter feel trapped in the embrace.

The older man just stands there offering his support lightly tracing lines along Peter's back as his breathing slows down. Peter can feel the adrenaline slowly bleed out of his system as the nightmare is chased away with every light touch full of care from the man in front of him. 

"Thanks." Peter whispers in the darkness as he takes the last step forward to lean his head on Quentin's shoulder. Quentin gently sways as he runs his hands along Peter's back and up through his hair lulling the younger man into a peaceful state. 

His lover? Boyfriend? They haven't really talked about that yet, not that it matters or anything probably. Anyway, his whatever he is, presses a kiss on the side of Peter's head before whispering in his ear "Anytime" sending shivers down Peter's spine. 

They stand there swaying in the darkness for who knows how long before the last of the nightmare has faded away leaving Peter tired and drained from the fight or flight response. He lets out a long sigh before lifting his head and placing a kiss on Quentin's cheek in thanks. 

Peter leads the older man back to bed and takes his place to spoon him from behind. He can't be held right now, but holding on to Quentin is just what the doctor ordered. They lay there in silence for a long time just breathing before Peter speaks up, feeling like he owes the other man an explanation.

"I was almost buried alive once." His voice is the barest of whisper but in the silence of the night his voice carries in the quiet room. "It was a few years ago, during what was my first ever disaster of a date. Was the girl's father who did it actually." He can feel the muscles in Quentin's back jump and tense.

"It was before-before things got better with Tony. I wasn't even an Avenger then, just some kid from Queens with a hero complex. I thought I could take on the world by myself back then. Eager to prove myself to Tony, wanting to show him I was worth his time and attention. I thought I was ready, but I wasn't. 

"I had spent years patrolling the streets and stopping petty crime, had never fought someone truly dangerous before. I had-I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I thought I could handle it even-even when Tony told me to back off, oh God I was so wrong. This guy was stealing tech and making weapons, dangerous weapons. Was planning on stealing Tony's tech too and I couldn't just let it happen ya know?" 

Peter licks his lips falling silent for a moment as he psyches himself up for the next part. The hard part. He has only ever talked to Ned about it, he knows May has her suspicions though. She would have to be stupid to not know something was up when he started having nightmares, terrible, horrible, awful nightmares out of the blue one night. She never pressed, but would come into the room and hold his hand until he calmed down.

"Too-Toomes. He was a really bad guy. Like he had no problem with killing a kid, a kid his daughter was on a date with even. I didn't even know people could be so evil and cold. The way--the way he looked at me as he knocked the building down on top of me? He didn't care. Like not even a little bit. I was nothing to him, killing me? He didn't even blink an eye.

"I was cocky after working with the Avengers in Germany, but they were playing with their kiddy gloves on with me ya know? I didn't realize it at the time, but when I was fighting for my life against Toomes I knew what real fear felt like for the first time." Peter's voice cracks as emotion overcomes him as he is transported back to that dark time of his life.

"Before I knew it I was trapped under tons of concrete, it blocked out the light and the air-the air was full of dust and I was...I was breathing too much struggling to not get crushed and was using up all my oxygen. There was no one coming, no back up. I had foolishly rushed off and was going to die alone in the dark under an entire building.

"I almost didn't make it. I was so close to dying. Like I know I technically died or got dusted or whatever and that was like, really not fun at all. Zero out of ten, would not recommend, but like it didn't hurt, and I wasn't alone. I had Tony there holding me while it happened and then between one blink and the next I was back. It was scary, but like nothing. NOTHING was as scary as when I was under that building.

"I don't deal well with confined spaces anymore because of it. That's the real reason I had to take a break after the subway." Peter admits with a sigh. "Some days are better than others, but I know I got like, PTSD from it so sometimes it is worse than others. I actually haven't had a nightmare this bad in a long time. Was kinda hoping I moved past them but guess not."

"I still dream of the wasteland of Gaea," Quentin begins softly after Peter falls silent for a time. "Like this world, everyone in it, you...all a dream born out of my desperation and slipping sanity. I wake up in the wastes of my world feeling more alone than ever, knowing I'll never see another person. Never feel the touch of a loved one.

"Those nightmares are the hardest for me. Even when I really wake up it feels like I am in a fog. As if nothing is real and I question everything around me. It doesn't matter that I've been here for over a year now, I still get them. Will get them for a long, long time. That is just how the mind works when we suffer a terrible trauma. 

"It will get better as time goes on, but we will always have bad days where the past haunts us. It doesn't make us weak, it is nothing to be ashamed of. It is natural, and there is no helping it." Quentin rolls onto his back so he can look into Peter's eyes. "But knowing you are here for me? It helps more than anything else could and I will always be here for you, I would gladly be thrown from the bed a thousand times as long as I can be there to hold you afterwards. Please don't blame yourself, it is the smallest price to pay, a price I will gladly pay for your happiness and well being."

***********

They manage to fall back asleep after a few hours of talking and end up sleeping in, well past sunrise. That ruins the plan of going out to the beach but they still have time for it another day. All the time in the world if Quentin has any say in it. Instead they spend a lazy day in bed just talking and holding on to one another after the eventful night. They go so far as to order in room service and eat in bed.

It is nice, just what Peter really needed to be honest. He can't remember the last time he spent a day doing nothing. Normally he would be bouncing off the walls needing to spend his excess energy but he finds lazing about with Quentin to be more than enough activity for him. 

They talk about everything and nothing, stopping often to just kiss for long moments. The mood is subdued in the room, after pouring their hearts out to one another the pair of them are happy to just bask in each other's company. Sometimes when they kiss it feels like they are building to something, something that Quentin is always putting a stop to, but not today.

They trade lazy kisses and cuddle the day away. It's nice. Really nice, if Peter is being honest. Not that he doesn't enjoy the excitement that builds up when they normally kiss but something about the relaxed atmosphere is soothing. It is comforting to be able to reach out and touch as much or as little as he wants without the weird anxiety/excitement building in his stomach. Today is all about being there for one another, nothing more, nothing less.

That night they don't even bother with the pretense of sleeping in separate beds. Peter quickly falls asleep lured by the gentle hands stroking up and down his back as he lays on Quentin's shoulder. Dreams don't haunt either of them that night leaving them well rested and ready for the day when they wake up bright and early the next day.

Peter is bouncing on his feet with excitement as he brushes his teeth. They are going to the beach today! The set back from yesterday only increased his excitement for today. In less than an hour they are going to the beach and he'll get to see Quentin in those shorts again! He can't wait!

Quentin seemed so nervous and unsure of himself when he had tried them on but God damn he looked good in them. Peter is going to make sure that by the end of the day he knows just how good he looks in them. There is literally no reason for the man to be shy over his body, he's built and in great shape. If anything he should be showing it off, but Peter is secretly glad that the older man is shy about it. Makes it something special just for him, as if its a gift meant for him and him alone.

His excitement at seeing Quentin makes him forget all about being shy about himself. He knows he'll look like a skinny kid when standing next to his brick house of a boyfriend, but he doesn't care. Because that brick house of a man? He chose Peter out of the countless people he could have in this world. 

Said brick house steps out of the bathroom wearing the grey hoodie and loose sweat pants over his shorts. Peter won't lie, he's a little disappointed to not get a preview but he gets it. For someone so used to being covered the thought of walking the distance to the beach with that much skin on display would be daunting. Peter is wearing sweats over his shorts as well, but that is more about wanting to wait till he can hide his knobby knees in the waves than anything else.

"You're sure no one will know-what with the scars?" Quentin asks, sliding up his sleeve revealing the lightning scars. 

"Well no one other than a few Avengers and some wizards have seen them so how would they know?"

"This can't be a common scar to have can it?"

"Well no, but no one will look too long. People don't like to look at scars, it's considered rude to stare so at most people might look for a moment but then turn away." Peter shrugs, "It'll be fine trust me."

"I do." God his sincerity is going to be the death of Peter in the best kind of ways. The man places so much faith in him, it is humbling. 

They walk hand in hand with towels thrown over their shoulders as they make their way to one of the few beaches in Venice. Kind of funny that a city built on top of water doesn't have more if you ask Peter. They woke up early so the streets are nearly empty as they walk through and it is not long before they arrive at their destination. 

There are only a handful of people scattered about the beach, perfect. Peter leads them far off from everyone else and drops his towel down while Quentin follows his lead. Peter steps out of his sweat pants and pulls his shirt off over his head tossing both on top of his towel. He turns around to catch Quentin's eyes wandering over his exposed skin hungrily. 

Oh, he's never even seen me outside of a T-shirt has he? His skin flushes in embarrassment, suddenly awkward, but in the next moment Quentin's eyes meet his as he lets out a whistle. Peter's cheeks flush at the attention but being the fair man that he is, Quentin kicks off his own sweat pants and Peter forgets all about his own embarrassment as he watches.

He never thought of himself as a leg man, or an anything man really, but the sight of Quentin's thick thighs do _things_ to Peter. He has strong and powerful legs, clearly he never forgets leg day. When Quentin unzips his hoodie and tosses it on top of his towel Peter might, just maybe, hold his breath a little in anticipation. Without making eye contact Quentin reaches down and pulls his shirt off over his head revealing his chest for the first time around Peter.

Peter might have made a sound. He might have his mouth hanging open, there might even be drool. But God damn who could blame him?

Lord have mercy is he well built. All the time he spent with Thor? Time well spent, Peter had felt those muscles through clothing and that well built chest made for an excellent pillow but seeing it with his own two eyes? Something else entirely.

Peter is ripped, but he doesn't have even half the mass Quentin does. His eyes roam over every curve of muscle and the faint lines of dark hair in a thin happy trail. He has some hair on his chest, but he is by no means a bear like Peter thought he might be judging off how thick and full his beard is. Don't get Peter wrong he'd love him just as much even if he was a wookie under his shirt, but this? This is better, so, so much better.

Almost as an afterthought Peter notices the lightning scars and can see just how far they really do go. They branch out growing thinner as they get further from his forearm and spread out lightly across his shoulder. A couple of thin arcs branch out over his chest fading out towards the middle of his chest. He'll have to wait for Quentin to turn around to see the back but he can see some arcs that go up and over his shoulder and assumes it will be similar to his front.

It does nothing to lessen his beauty, in fact they kind of add an exotic appeal to him. Makes him appear wild and storm touched. Peter likes it. A lot. He knows his face must show how much he likes what he sees when he finally remembers to make eye contact again and sees a red flush along Quentin's neck. 

"You look- Wow. Just so. Wow." Quentin smiles shyly at Peter's broken compliment. "For real, like this was the best idea ever!" 

"Glad you think so, you don't look so bad yourself." Peter ducks his head at the compliment knowing he doesn't look nearly as good as his boyfriend. "You are a sight for sore eyes if there ever was one." 

"Oh stop it," Peter waves away the compliment grabbing Quentin's hand and practically skips in his excitement to get in the water. Quentin laughs at Peter's antics but joins in all the same. They walk hand in hand until the water is up to their waists before Peter turns back around and flashes the older man a playful smirk before yanking for all he's worth pulling the other man off balance sending him crashing into Peter and knocking them both over into the water.

Quentin comes up sputtering and spitting water much to Peter's delight and he doesn't hold back his laughter at Quentin's surprised face. Quentin brushes his wild hair back out of his eyes so that he can see Peter. The look he gives Peter is intense, for just a second Peter thinks he went too far doing that without warning. An apology is on his lips just as the other man rushes him tackling him and wrestling him back under the waves.

It is then Peter's turn to come up spluttering face to face with an unrepentant Quentin. He floats just inches away from Peter, his eyes glittering playfully before he swoops in to steal a kiss from his young lover. 

Okay. Wow. So kissing Quentin while pressed together with nothing but waves between them? That is an entirely different level of hot. Peter was not prepared for this, not by a long shot. His hands reach up wrapping around Quentin's broad shoulders and instead of the feeling of fabric he had grown used to he feels bare skin. His hands slide up and down Quentin's back as they kiss, touching everywhere he can reach and reveling in it.

He feels Quentin's own hands wandering along his back before trailing down to grip his hips tracing the line of where his swim shorts hang off his hips. He's never felt anything like this before, there is just something about not having a barrier between them that gets his blood pumping.

Their kiss quickly grows heated as they touch each other with abandon. A low growl rumbles in Quentin's chest, the only warning Peter gets before the hands on his hips pull him forward and hold him tight against his chest. Peter lets out a gasp when his chest comes into contact with Quentin's. 

Ohmygod. His brain short circuits for a moment as his senses are overwhelmed with sensation. Their bodies slide together as waves rock against them gently, the sensations setting his nerves on fire. The smooth, water-slick skin brushing against his own feels amazing. Way, way better than when they have pesky clothes in the way. Holy shit.

Quentin finally breaks their kiss as he sucks in large gasps of air. He looks down at Peter through his eye lashes as he catches his breath. Water drips from his hair and runs in streams down his neck. He looks absolutely wrecked, his chest heaving from both the need for oxygen and from the sensation of their bodies pressed together with naught but water between them. 

He's never looked more beautiful, Peter thinks. The hands holding his hips twitch once before they relax their hold allowing Peter to float a few inches away. The cool ocean water rushes between their heated bodies as they just stare at one another for long moments. 

"Oh Gaea Peter, you're just-perfect. It's so hard to control myself around you while you look like this. Sorry for overstepping." Quentin lets his hands fall off from Peter's hips but Peter ain't having none of that. He uses his arms still wrapped around Quentin's shoulders to pull him down for another kiss instead.

Quentin allows him his lips but keeps his body held away much to Peter's disappointment but he'll take what he can get. They kiss as the waves crash around them before Quentin pulls back again for breath. This time Peter lets him go not wanting to push too much. At least not yet, but he won't deny enjoying pushing the older man to his limits. There is just something heady when Quentin is more forward, when his gentle touch turns into grasping.

"I-" Quentin starts, "I think I'm going to swim some laps. Haven't swam yet in this world." 

"Oh, I didn't think about that. Yeah, no sorry let's go!" Quentin dives under the waves and swims off with Peter on his heels.

They swim out into deeper water and back many times getting their exercise for the day in. It's nice, Peter hasn't had much opportunity to swim himself since, well forever really. Just not something he's sought out much in his life, but watching the other man's flawless form makes him want to do it more. Clearly this is something the other man has a passion for, and it's not like it is a hardship to watch him glide through the water.

At one point Quentin suggests a race and Peter is so game. His lithe body helps him cut through the water faster even if his form isn't nearly as good as the larger man's. His enhanced strength might play a large role in him winning the race as well, but Quentin doesn't seem to mind losing one bit when he catches up to Peter and gives him his prize in the form of a kiss. 

They swim and play in the water for maybe another half hour before they decide to call it quits before the beach fills up with people. They have one last race to the shore, and again, Peter wins. As he turns back around to watch Quentin walk out of the waves with water pouring in streams down his chest he realizes just how much he really did win. Bay Watch ain't got nothing on watching his boyfriend dripping wet walking towards him.

Quentin's eyes dart across the beach making Peter look too and he realizes he isn't the only one enjoying the view. Not that he could blame anyone of course. Who wouldn't watch? 

Not wanting Quentin to feel any more uncomfortable Peter is quick to grab his towel for him and wraps it around his shoulders. The taller man leans down giving him a kiss in thanks before Peter steps back to grab his own towel. They dry off and put back on their clothes and none too soon as the beach is starting to fill with people. They share a look before gathering up their things and heading back to the hotel.

***************

After that eventful and testing day Quentin is careful to steer them away from any other activities that might test his ability to resist the younger man. He feels guilty and berates himself for his slip of control. He knows that if Peter was upset or was bothered he could have easily pushed him off of him-but he shouldn't have even grabbed on to him like that in the first place. Gaea help him, it was too much for him to resist feeling Peter's bare skin against his own. 

The next week they fill up with sightseeing, exploring and a few romantic dates under the stars, or in the candle light as the mood hits them. This is what Peter deserves, and by Gaea is Quentin doing his best to give him just that. He knows that Peter enjoyed their more _intimate_ time spent on the beach earlier, but he's still so young and full of hormones. His body will want to rush him before his heart is truly ready for anything, so does not only Quentin have to fight his own urges he has to fight to keep Peter from succumbing to his own.

It is a lot more difficult than he had first anticipated. The younger man likes to push him, and by Gaea's light, does Quentin enjoy being pushed. They really are perfect for one another, but it has the down side of making it really hard for Quentin to keep them on the slow and steady path.

It is not until the end of the second week that he gets a small reprieve from his frustrations(although he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy this kind of _frustration_) when Peter announces their vacation is coming to an end. They spend one last night cuddling together in bed not sleeping until they must. Both not looking forward to having to sleep apart once more. 

Quentin spends the long hours of the night running his hands across Peter's back and arms as if trying to imprint the feeling into his memory. Once they leave this hotel room in the morning it will be some time until they can spend their nights together again like this. They know this won't be the last time, but they both make the most of it anyway. It is for the best, because if they spent too many more nights together like this it would only be a matter of time until Peter pushes all the right buttons to make Quentin lose his already slippery hold of control over himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big boy chapter this time cause I didn't want to write a bunch of small ones, hope it reads alright with the POV swapping and such.
> 
> Got one more arc planned after this and then an epilogue woop woop we're getting there!


	24. Back Home

Peter kisses Quentin for all he is worth before he steps onto the jet that will take him back to Queens. The man from another world still has to fly back to the Hong Kong Sanctum to grab his things and make arrangements to move back to the New York Sanctum so this is the last time they will see each other for at least a day, maybe two. 

That shouldn't sound so bad but after spending nearly every waking and sleeping moment with each other for the last two weeks Peter doesn't want to be parted from the man for any amount of time. Quentin tells him it is good to have time apart, that it will give them both time to readjust and ease into their new relationship in a more healthy way. He's right, Peter knows he is, but he can't help his illogical feelings anymore than he can help being Spider-Man.

Once they finally break apart they both promise to call when they land at their respective destinations. Peter watches Quentin fly off back towards the Hong Kong Sanctum until his green streak goes out of sight before he climbs into the jet. Once he steps inside he finds that his pilot today is none other than Happy himself. Peter greets him with a big smile that the larger man returns easily. 

Whatever awkwardness there has been between Peter and Tony during the past few months Happy has been there for the both of them. He's been Tony's best friend for longer than anyone, and knows how his friend gets over reacting and has been there to help pick up the pieces of his many, many, social blunders. The whole thing with chasing off Quentin was no exception, he helped Peter to understand and forgive Tony faster(he was always going to forgive him, that was never in question). 

Peter is sure it was in no small part Happy's influence that got Tony to agree to loaning out the jet and setting Peter up in Venice for his meet up with Quentin. One can only guilt trip Tony so far, and him doing this and keeping his big nose out of it for the last two weeks? That had to have come from an outside influence in the form of Happy.

The teen bounces on his toes trying to resist telling Happy the big news until they land so he can do a cool dramatic reveal, but it just slips out before they even take off.

"You're kidding me?" Happy asks incredulously, but Peter shakes his head with a bright smile. "Oh God I can't wait to see Tony's face. He's going to have a melt down, going to have an error like one of his little programs and crash."

"I know right?!" Peter agrees enthusiastically, "His face is totally going to do the thing." Happy nods in agreement.

"Fifty bucks says he gets the eye twitch and can't speak for a solid 10 seconds." Peter laughs at the mental image, not doubting it for a second. 

They take their seats and catch up during the flight back to New York for a while. There is a lull in the conversation so Peter texts Ned telling him the news and gets back a screen full of exclamation marks and then his phone is ringing.

"Dude!" Ned starts without preamble, "You serious? Like really serious?"

"Yeah man."

"Holy shit dude that's crazy! Wow."

Peter fills him in on the juicy details during the long flight making the flight seem shorter. Before he knows it, Happy is landing the quinjet and Peter ends the call with Ned promising to meet up soon. Peter gathers up his bags that contain the clothes he brought and the ones he bought for Quentin. It seemed a waste to not bring them with him since he had a jet and Quentin would be returning to New York soon anyway. 

He pulls the two duffel bags on wheels behind him as he walks down the ramp. He's watching the wheels so they don't catch so he doesn't see who is waiting for him until he nearly collides with Tony at the bottom of the ramp. Peter looks up and watches Tony's face flicker through a bunch of expressions as his eyes flit about the duffel bags knowing it isn't all Peter's.

There is an uncomfortable silence between them for a moment, but it's not on Peter to break it. If Tony has a problem with this? That's on him, Peter is done with having other people stick their noses in his business. The silence stretches for another second before Tony's shoulders droop ever so slightly.

"Welcome back kid." Peter's expression goes from defensive to letting out a tentative smile at the olive branch being given. Something he knows Tony struggles with even now. It means a lot that he's trying.

"Thanks." Peter says simply as they walk together towards the main building in silence. The silence is heavy with unasked questions from his father figure, but he's keeping his lips tight until they are in the building and comfortable at least. That's nice. 

Once Peter has set down his bags and Happy rejoins them in the lounge area it is easy to see how hard it is for Tony to keep quiet. Peter shares a look with Happy who gets his phone out and at the ready before Peter takes pity on Tony.

"So. . .I had fun." Tony's eye twitches ever so slightly and it's easy to tell he's holding back an 'I bet you did'.

"Right, good." Tony starts then stops. "So, how did it go with," he waves his hand around, unable to bring himself to say it, "all that jazz? I see you brought back more than what you left with."

"Yup." Peter drags out the word and ends it with a hard pop, a habit he's picked up from Tony. "Went a lot better than I was expecting. Like way, way better." 

Tony's eyebrow twitches more violently at that and Peter struggles to keep a straight face. Happy hides his face behind his phone as he films the whole thing, unable to keep the smile off his lips.

"Right. That's, that's good to hear." 

Peter drops the bombshell on him then and oh boy were they ever right. His face totally does the thing, all caught on camera by Happy. That video is sure to make the rounds through the Avengers group chat later after they give Tony a day or two to adjust to the idea of it all.

Peter doesn't stay too long before he's heading back home to see May and tell her the wonderful news. He knows she'll be happy for him above all else. She has long talked about him just needing to meet the right person, like she had with Ben. May never wanted Peter to struggle alone for as long as he has, hearing that not only has he repaired his friendship with Quentin but found something more with him? She'll be over the moon, Peter just knows it.

On the drive back he texts Quentin to let him know he's back in New York safe and sound but gets no reply back. Probably just busy with talking to the wizards and getting his stuff transferred out here. Peter doesn't really know how they do things, even now they are very secretive about their ways to outsiders. 

He doesn't think for a second that there would be a problem with moving Quentin though. He's one of them in spirit even if he isn't in name. He did a lot of good out there so surely they wouldn't have a problem moving him back here.

Pushing it out of his mind for now Peter climbs the steps to his apartment with May easily lugging the two suitcases up the way too many flights of stairs. He gets to his door and unlocks it, May will still be at work for a few more hours so he has time to put things away and relax before she gets home at least. 

He kicks off his shoes at the door and drags the two duffel bags to his room and starts on putting his clothes away when his spidey sense tingles a moment before a golden portal opens up and out steps Quentin who pulls the surprised teen into a kiss. Peter makes a 'Mphff!' sound in surprise as his lips are stolen by Quentin before relaxing into the other man's arms returning the kiss enthusiastically. 

A polite cough comes through from the other side of the portal stealing their attention away from one another. Peter turns to see Dr. Strange standing on the other side looking politely away from the couple.

"Sorry." Quentin says turning back to face the shimmering portal.

"It's quite alright. I know how. . .moving it can be to be reunited with one that you share a soul bond with." He has a faint smile on his lips, a private one. Peter doesn't know what he's referring to but even his limited social skills tell him it would be impolite to ask. Dr. Strange makes a hand motion and the duffel bag with Quentin's clothes levitates up and through the portal.

"I'll just take this and you can get settled after your lover's reunion sans a third wheel."

"Thank you." Quentin says ducking his head in embarrassment at his inability to control himself for the smallest amounts of time around Peter. Dr. Strange has no further comment before he closes the golden portal behind the bag leaving the two love birds alone in Peter's room.

"I thought you said time apart would be good?" Peter asks with a smirk.

"Well, we had a few hours apart didn't we?" Quentin says as he pulls Peter against him in an embrace. The teen melts against the larger man, he knows its weird but he couldn't help missing the other man even if it was only for half the day.

They spend the next few hours just kissing and talking in Peter's room until Peter's keen senses hear the lock being turned as May gets home. He isn't ashamed to admit he might have pushed Quentin away with no small amount of force in his hurry to get up. He imagined telling May a bunch of different ways.

Her walking in to find them making out on his bed was not one of them.

"May's home." He explains when Quentin gives him a questioning look at the sudden change of pace. His face takes on a look of panic, no doubt he doesn't want to start this off wrong either. They hurriedly straighten their clothes and Peter tries, and fails, to tame his hair after having Quentin's fingers running through it. 

Quentin stills his hands with his own and gently smooths down Peter's hair as best he can before he gestures to his own face.

"How about me?" Peter's cheeks are tinted with pink at the sight of Quentin's hair going this way and that. It would take one single glance and May would know what they were getting up to while she was gone. As much as Peter loves the messy look Quentin is rocking it won't do at all so he does his best to tame it.

It's still messy but could maybe, possibly, if they are lucky, pass for being messed up from the wind and not a hot make out session. It will have to do. Peter takes Quentin's hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze that gets him a grateful smile in return. Whatever happens they are in this together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little short interlude before we get back on track. Going to try and get as much out as I can before work gets crazy in the next week or two. Here is to hoping I can finish this monster before the holiday hits woot woot!


	25. All Things Must Come to an End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Said I would wait til I wrote the whole arc before posting.
> 
> I lied.
> 
> Got the one after this done and started the next. It's gonna be slow though sorry, too much work makes author a sad grill.

After having a surprisingly not so awkward dinner with Peter and May(who of course took the news in stride and was just so happy for them she ended up crying) Quentin reluctantly bids them good night. He flies back to the New York Sanctum and smiles in greeting to the Sorcerers there he has not seen in some time. Feeling as if he was on top of the world he stops and chats with many of the order and gives them news about their fellows in the Hong Kong Sanctum.

He feels like a brand new man as he walks the halls to his room, the last time he had walked them he had thought his life was over. That he had ruined everything, he couldn't be happier to have been proven wrong. He spends his time slowly unpacking his things, taking extra care with the photos he dared not even look at, not even once, since everything had fallen apart.

He had hidden them, like he had hidden his feelings, as if he should be ashamed of them- but no more. He proudly displays them around his room, proud of the brave young man in his life. For the first time in a long time he feels like he has a home again. A place in this world. 

A place beside Peter.

His soul mate, his very reason for living and breathing. 

That night he struggles to sleep without Peter's warmth beside him. Although they had only been sleeping in the same bed for two weeks the older man had grown used to feeling his weight beside and on top of him. Eventually he does manage to find some sleep and greets the day to a message from Peter, something he sorely missed during their time apart.

*****************

Over the next month they fall into a habit of patrolling together 5 nights a week and going out on dates at least once a week. They leave one day a week apart so that they won't make the same mistake of distancing themselves from everyone else. Quentin uses his time apart to slowly work on fixing the mess he made of his relationships with the Avengers. Many of which are off world now, but others he seeks out to spend time with. 

It is rocky, really rocky with Tony at first. Quentin doesn't blame him one bit for what he did, he would have done the same if he were in his shoes. That being said it doesn't help the hurt feelings and lost trust between the two of them. Quentin is not sure if they'll ever have the carefree friendship they had before, but he would be happy to just have the ice melt a bit when they are around each other.

Oddly enough it is The Sorcerer Supreme who is the biggest help in solving their issues. As long as Quentin has known the man he has shied away from interpersonal problems and is well known for being callous and cold to other people's feelings, but underneath it all he has a heart. 

And a soulmate strangely enough. Quentin had not known the people of this world, outside of his special circumstance with Peter of course, could have soulmates. There is little to no documentation of it after all. It seemed to be solely a romantic notion and nothing more, and yet the mysterious Sorcerer Supreme has an even more mysterious soulmate he as of yet refuses to let anyone meet. 

In fact, Quentin is certain he would have kept his soulmate a secret to his dying breath if it were not for Quentin and Peter's situation. Quentin, for one, is grateful he had not chosen to do so though. It went a long way in repairing his and Tony's relationship with Stephen there to back him up about the soul bond, something he had seen and known about ever since Peter had gone to him with the pendant and gave cause for the sorcerer to closely examine the younger man's aura.

Though Quentin knew it not at the time, the pendant he created for Peter could not work the way it does if he had created it for anyone else. Apparently the magical link between them would not have worked to share even their feelings had they not shared a soul bond. It still would have worked like a distress beacon if it were made for someone else but that would have been the extent of its abilities. 

Stephen had explained as much to Tony and Quentin both one fateful day not a week after Quentin had returned to New York and had been confronted by Tony in an off hand manner questioning the validity of their 'so called soul bond'. Stephen had then explained that soul bonds were visible when looking at people's auras. Normally two people's auras cannot blend. Even between those who are very well suited for one another it never goes past a very slight blurring of the lines.

While in couples who share a soul bond, when they stand next to one another their auras will mix and flow into one another. He went on to explain that he has witnessed it between himself and his soul mate and one other couple he refrained from naming. On this planet such a thing is incredibly rare, sacred to many in fact. 

As such, there are very few texts about it in existence, but as fate would have it, he had one such text in his possession. He willed it forth and allowed both Tony and Quentin to look through it's fragile pages before willing it away. 

At first Tony was still skeptical, but ever the practical one, Stephen suggested a demonstration. He stepped through a portal and was gone for a few moments. Those moments felt like an eternity to the two men as an incredibly awkward silence fell between them. One had justified reason to be distrustful, and the other justified in being offended for being questioned on something considered sacred amongst his people. It would be unthinkable to lie about a soul bond on Gaea, nothing could be more foul or heinous.

To be accused of such a thing? To even think that Gaea's own champion could go against nature like that is an insult of the gravest sort. Tony knows not of what he speaks, of what his accusations would mean back on Quentin's world. Ignorant or not, the very thought that someone could think he would be capable of such an act set his blood to a boil. 

It is not often that he loses his temper, but if anything were to do it? This would be it. Quentin could not even bear to look at the other man, he dared not risk seeing an expression on the other man's face that would make him lose what little control he has over his anger. 

With his eyes closed and his fist clenched tightly at his sides he blocked out the outside world and did breathing exercises to find his center. When he had woken up that morning he had no reason to suspect that he would be accused of an unspeakable crime, one so terrible there were only whispers of the possibility of it happening in the darkest times of Gaea's history. A ghost story to scare children, tales of their barbaric past-certainly not a thing that could happen since their spiritual awakening!

He was so intent on controlling his anger that he did not notice the return of the sorcerer and as such jerked in surprise when he felt someone's hand on his arm. His eyes flew up ready for a fight, having thought that it was Tony but was surprised to see Peter's concerned face instead. The teen had then grabbed his arm and pulled open his fist so that he could hold his hand instead.

What did he do to deserve this man in his life? Whatever it was? It wasn't enough, Quentin thought to himself as the anger he had felt disappeared like so much smoke in the wind when faced with Peter's unfailing kindness. 

Stephen then left again and returned with a cross looking Pepper who glared daggers at her husband. She knew that her being shanghaied from her desk by the sorcerer could be no one else's doing besides that of her husband. One would think after years he would learn to stop putting his nose into other people's business, but much to her disappointment that is one lesson he'll never learn.

Tony looked rightfully cowed by his wife's glares and the tense atmosphere of the room eased into something far more hospitable. Pretending that he did not notice the formerly icy air of the room the Sorcerer Supreme cast a spell upon them all allowing them to see auras for a time. 

Quentin looked at Peter and could see the swirling green of his own aura mixing with the vibrant orange of Peter's. Where their hands were joined the colors blended together so seamlessly it was impossible to tell where one ended and another began. The orange and green had an ebb and flow between them, some moments Peter's orange flowed into his green and other his into Peter's.

Stephen cleared his throat and directed their attention to the other couple. Tony had a gold aura, because of course he would. Pepper had a lovely turquoise glow around her, but there was one startling difference between their aura's and that of Peter's and Quentin's. 

They did not blend, did not even blur in the slightest even when they were holding hands. There was a clear and very distinct separation between their auras. Stephen explained that the separation was normal and held no barring on their relationship. 

It simply meant that the two did not share a soul bond, along with 99.99999% of the rest of the Earth's population. 

******************

After that day things got better between Tony and Quentin, albeit very slowly and not without occasional slides back in the wrong direction. Wanda tells him it was the same with her and Tony for a long time after the whole Civil War debacle, but over time it got better. While the billionaire may hold a grudge, he understands better than most that mistakes happen and that the only way forward is through forgiveness.

Quentin himself does what he can to forgive and having Peter by his side helps greatly. The two of them spend much of their time together going on dates and patrolling while they get more and more comfortable in their developing relationship. Quentin does his best to keep the pace slow, but at times it is trying. 

Times like tonight when they have spent the day hanging out watching movies on the couch until the hour turns late and his young lover asks him to stay the night. They had not been sleeping together since they came back from Venice. Over time Quentin readjusted to sleeping alone, but he would be lying if he said he didn't wish Peter was beside him every night.

"I'm not asking you to, ya know, do _anything_," Peter back tracks, "I mean May is home after all and that would be. . .weird. All I'm saying is it would be nice to cuddle you again is all. I really miss it."

"Me too." Quentin admits brushing his lips against the side of Peter's head as they sit on the couch together not watching the credits of the movie they just finished. They've already done that before and it was fine wasn't it? He justifies to himself, already knowing he will cave to Peter's request. 

"Come on just tonight?" Peter tilts his head up giving him the full force of his puppy eyes, one of Quentin's greatest weaknesses. Quentin leans down and presses a soft kiss against Peter's lips and whispers 'okay' against them as he pulls back. Peter's smile goes radiant and pushes up to give Quentin another kiss as a reward.

Ever the proper one, Quentin takes it upon himself to ask permission from May, and if that wasn't the most awkward conversation he's ever had he doesn't know what is. May has choice words, not the words you would expect from the guardian of the person you are dating, oh no that woman all but lit up and was excited for Peter. Asked if she needed to leave the apartment for their _ alone time_.

Quentin is mortified, and Peter has transformed into a full blown tomato before they can get her to stop. They talk over each other, denying what she thinks is going on, but she just winks at them and says 'sure I get it'. 

Eventually they are able to convince her it's not what she thinks and that under no circumstances does she need to leave, and no she doesn't need to wear ear plugs. And for the last time that they don't need protection thank you very much.

Gaea help him, he's never wanted a villainous person to wreak havoc more in his life than he does at this moment. He now understands why Peter gets embarrassed as badly as he does sometimes. May is a special woman, that's for sure.

The plus side of that disaster of a conversation is that Quentin is without a doubt dead certain Peter won't try and push him into anything. Whatever mood that could have happened between them? Dead before it could ever even happen. Thanks May.

They get changed and brush their teeth before going into Peter's room and Quentin immediately spots the _small_ oversight in their plans, and he does mean small. Peter's bed is made for one person and one person alone. Quentin stares at it calculating how much room the two of them will take up on it and the math does not add up.

The only way they are doing this is if Quentin ends up being Peter's bed and even then it will be a tight fit. Peter looks between him and the bed and Quentin watches as the light bulb goes off in his head when he figures out why Quentin is staring.

"Oh." Peter says softly before his cheeks tint ever so slightly. "Umm, you don't mind do you? I mean I usually ended up using you as a pillow most nights anyway right?"

"Mind it? I love having you fall asleep on me, waking up with your weight on my chest is the best way to wake up." Quentin answers honestly. "But this? This would be a little more, uh, intimate."

"Well, it's not like anything is gonna happen-not after May especially." Peter shudders at the thought and Quentin can relate. "If you wouldn't be comfortable I won't make you stay though." Peter ducks his head, Quentin knows his young lover would be disappointed if he didn't stay even if he says he wouldn't be. 

Quentin just takes off his shirt and tosses it to the side before climbing into the bed. It would be too hot to wear it when added with Peter's body heat. Truth be told if it were different circumstances he would forgo the sleep pants as well, but that is not happening, no way, no how. 

Peter blinks a few times before he shrugs and tosses his shirt to the floor to join Quentin's. He awkwardly climbs onto the bed and Quentin. They spend a few minutes adjusting and finding comfortable positions before they finally settle down.

Peter is lying on his side more than half draped over Quentin who lies flat on his back with an arm around Peter's back holding him close. 

"This is nice, I really missed this." Peter hums contentedly against Quentin's neck and he can't agree more. While the space is not ideal, having Peter next to him more than makes up for it. Peter idly runs his fingers along Quentin's chest tracing shapes and making random designs. 

It's soothing and Quentin can feel the pull of sleep tugging at his mind after just a few minutes of Peter's ministrations. He returns the favor stroking what he can reach of Peter's lower back with the arm wrapped around the smaller man. 

He is content, warm, and loved; he doesn't stand a chance of resisting sleep's siren call. He drifts off between one thought and the next with a faint smile on his lips.

******************

It has been a little over two months since he was reunited with Peter and Quentin has been loving life. Somehow, despite everything he's suffered he's been gifted a life that is more akin to a dream than reality. He cherishes every moment he gets to spend with Peter, knowing all too well that in life nothing can last forever. 

Ironically it is not a monster, nor a villain that comes out of the woodwork to throw a monkey wrench in their happiness, it is a lucky photo. Quentin had been so careful to keep their relationship a secret from the masses for the sake of Peter's secret identity. He made sure to keep his hands to himself and when he couldn't or more often when Peter pushed he made sure they were on a roof top or somewhere else they weren't likely to be seen when they were out on patrol.

Except tonight, he had lost track of Peter down a dark alley in a seedy part of Queens and was looking around when suddenly Peter surprised him from above. Peter hung upside down in front of him and without any warning pulled his mask half way off and pressed in for a kiss.

The unique angle and Peter's forwardness worked in tandem to melt what little will he had to put a stop to the public display of affection. Quentin's hands raise on their own to stroke the sides of Peter's face while his mouth is invaded by his lover's tongue. He's never once thought of kissing like this, the angle and the sensations are all so new and yet familiar at the same time.

They kiss for long minutes, the both of them forgetting where they are as they get lost in one another Peter twitches and breaks the kiss.

"I heard something." He says through his mask which he's already righted. Quentin turns to look where Peter is looking, but he sees nothing in the darkness but he can't shake the sinking feeling that over takes him. 

Spooked they both decide to cut the patrol short after looking around the alley and finding nothing. Quentin flies off back to his room at the Sanctum but sleep does not come that night. He feels as if he made a mistake, as if his slip of control will prove to be a disaster in the making. 

When morning comes and with it a blank message from Tony with just an attachment his heart sinks. Before he even opens it he knows what it will be.

It's a poorly lit shot of Peter and him kissing in the alley. Thankfully Peter's face is obscured by the mask that was still covering half his face, but Quentin's is plain to see. Not that anyone else could be levitating in the air dressed in his vestments.

** MYSTERIO AND SPIDER-MAN THE NEXT SUPER-POWER COUPLE?!**

The headline of the article reads, it goes on to speculate who is under the Spider-Man mask and if their secret relationship had something to do with the falling out between Mysterio and the Avengers that happened last year and his subsequent return. 

His heart plummets and the words blur before his eyes as he gets lost in his worries. He knows just how important Peter's secret identity is to him, how much of a set back this will be. With his face splashed all over the headlines and news there is no way they will be able to go out incognito for quite some time. It would be too risky for Peter since now the people's interest has peaked. They'll be looking for Quentin and the mystery man under the mask. 

His phone rings and the screen shows Pepper's face, not the person he expected to be the first to call.

"Hello?" He answers with a shaky voice.

"Hello Quentin, looks like we got ourselves a scandal in the making." She starts with a sigh that makes his chest go tight. "Try not to worry, it's not the end of the world, these things happen. In fact, they happen a lot with Tony so we have experience in lessening the damage. Lord knows how many things I had to handle for Tony over the years, at least this one isn't too bad and they don't have any information."

She pauses and lets out a small regretful sigh.

"Unfortunately it does mean you two will have to lay low for a few days while I put out a gag order and do damage control. I told Peter the bad news when he called me in a panic earlier, he understands and is willing to trust my judgement. Will you?"

Quentin is silent for a long moment as the image of Peter panicking when he woke up hits him. Quentin scrubs a hand over his face feeling responsible for his young lover's distress.

"Of course." He forces the words out of his constricted throat.

"This was always going to come out one way or another eventually. No secret is safe forever, while not ideal it could have been worse. They don't have a face to put behind the mask, and his identity will remain safe as long as the two of you do exactly as I say."

"I will. We will." Quentin lets out a long breath he hadn't realized he was holding fearing his slip of control had outed Peter.

"Good." Quentin can hear the smile in her voice and it gives him hope. "To start, for the next two days you aren't to leave the Sanctum for anything other than an Avengers level threat, a natural disaster, or if called in as back up for another Avenger. If, heaven forbid, you do have to leave you are not under any circumstances to speak with members of the press or anyone who could be press. In fact, just don't speak to anyone you don't have to. Keep your helmet on and fly off if you have to, just don't give them anything they can twist and use.

"Secondly, after we have given it a few days to calm down we will call Peter and yourself to meet up in a secret location to discuss how we want to move forward with this. We will have different options available for the two of you to discuss by that time."

There is a heavy pause on the line before she continues.

"And third?" Her voice is soft, gentle. "Try and distract yourself until then okay? This isn't the first nor even the hundredth scandal I've had to deal with over the years of being associated with my hot mess of a husband. We will get through this, it is going to be crappy for a while, but it will get better. Okay?"

"Okay, thank you Pepper. You are an amazing and kind woman to do this for us."

"Honey? You're family. Whether or not Tony has pulled his head out of his ass over this yet or not. We will take care of you, don't you worry."

After getting off the phone with Pepper his heart already starts to feel lighter. He had never had to deal with a scandal in his time as Champion, as he was lucky to find his wife in the last years of his schooling. He wouldn't have known what to do, but knowing someone with experience is out there taking care of it for him does much to ease his worries.

He takes a few minutes to calm his nerves before he calls Peter. It would do no good to call to comfort his lover if he is still panicking himself after all. They talk for over an hour on the phone before the panic fades from Peter's voice to be replaced with sadness at not being able to see each other and missing their planned date night.

For the next few days they will have to rely on the phone and video calls to see one another, which is still light years better than when they weren't speaking but neither of them is happy about it. Eventually Peter gets a call from Ned and ends their call to talk to his best friend but he promises to call back later when he can.

That night Quentin finds sleep to be impossible for the second night in a row and can feel how taxed his system is from the stress on top of no sleep. His already sour mood becomes even more bleak with the lack of sleep. He finds his appetite has left him, but he promised Pepper he would try so he forces himself to grab some food from the common room before retreating back to his room to eat it.

He knows the food should taste good, but it is naught but dust in his mouth. He tries, and tries to be positive, if not for himself than for Peter in case he calls in need of reassurance again but it is like fighting an uphill battle with a chain around his ankle. The day turns into night and he hopes that in his exhaustion he will be able to sleep but before he can even get into bed his phone goes off with a message.

Grabbing it from a top the night stand he unlocks it to see a message from Pepper to meet up. He hadn't expected her to take care of things so fast, she had said a few days after all, but he won't kick a gift horse in the mouth. There is an address listed and detailed instructions on how to get there. She is specific in saying that he should come dressed as he normally is as there is no chance of them being discovered so he forgoes changing out of his suit. 

He follows the instructions and there is a car waiting for him in one of the underground passages nearby. It is nondescript and black and the driver doesn't reveal themselves to Quentin. Probably for the best as he is a mix of nervous and excited at getting to see Peter sooner than he had thought even if the circumstances are far from ideal.

They drive a long winding path that Quentin doesn't even try to follow before they come up to a derelict warehouse. It must be a thing with the heroes of this world to meet up at places like this Quentin thinks to himself. They park underground and Quentin is led by the quiet driver through a maze of hallways until they enter a room seemingly at random. The man holds the door open and gestures for Quentin to step inside.

He walks in and sees Peter sitting at a table with Pepper at his side. He sees Quentin walk through the door and knocks over his chair in his rush to stand up and runs up to Quentin. Quentin throws his arms out wide to catch Peter in a hug as he barrels into him with a surprising amount of weight. He feels Peter's arms around his neck but the feeling is off, they feel too big but he pays it no mind.

At least until he feels a sharp stab in his neck and stumbles backwards away from Peter. He looks up in confusion at his lover wearing an expression he's never seen on his face before. His eyes are entirely devoid of emotion and warmth as he watches Quentin lose his footing. 

Quentin pulls his hand back from where he was stabbed in the neck and looks in total confusion at the empty syringe in his hand then looks up at Peter as he goes in and out of focus. At first he thinks it is an effect from whatever he was injected with when Peter's face melts away and he sees his own face twisted with delight looking back at him.

"Wha-" He tries to talk but his tongue has gone numb in his mouth, he drops down to his knees as his legs give out. He doesn't understand, what is going on?? His doppelganger slowly advances on him watching with cold eyes as whatever he injected Quentin with takes full effect. 

Black spots appear in his vision and he can feel his heart rate slowing down from the poison in his veins. He reels back as the monster with his face draws near and falls the rest the way down onto his back with a soft thud. His own face leans over him and stares at him with not one ounce of emotion as his vision tunnels. 

The last thing he sees is his own face above him twisting into a cruel, triumphant smile before the darkness consumes him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *evil laughter* 
> 
> Oh boy I been waiting excited to bust out this twist since before I wrote my first word. As I got closer to this part it was super hard to write other stuff so sorry if the chapters before this were off. Couldn't help myself. hehehehehehe 
> 
> Love me some fluffy romance, but angsty ass shit(with a happy ending!) is my jam.
> 
> Edit: Okay I should have stated that there will be no non-con or anything like that in this in case anyone is worried. Nothing too far out of what is canon typical for the MCU scouts honor. I wouldn't sneak anything triggery without it being in the tags from day one.


	26. The Monster In Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short one so y'all ain't hanging on a cliff hanger no more. Next update might be a week out or so depending on work. :)

Quentin regains consciousness slowly, his senses not working properly. He doesn't remember falling asleep the night before but having gone two days without sleep he must have gone out before his head hit the pillow. He frowns, that's not quite right, he's missing something. He struggles to open his eyes, even at his most tired he's never felt like this before. It is almost as if his eyes won't listen to his commands to open them.

Slowly he tries to move his body but he can't manage more than a twitch of his fingers. Something is wrong, gravely wrong. The fog clouding his mind won't allow him to think, his thoughts break apart before he can even form them. He feels drugged.

That thought sticks for a moment, though he does not know why. He feels as if it is important, critical and yet it slips away before he can get a hold on it. Just as his hold on consciousness slips once more. 

He regains consciousness several more times repeating this, though he knows it not at the time before he manages to open his eyes for the first time.

He blinks up at too bright lights that obscure his vision. It takes several minutes for his eyes to adjust enough for him to make out the flickering fluorescent lights above him on the grey concrete ceiling. He lets his head fall to the side and more dirty grey walls fill his vision.

A groan escapes his lips as he tries to lift his head raising it no more than an inch before his strength is sapped away and it falls back down against whatever he is lying on. 

"Ahh good you're finally waking up, had us worried for a minute we got the dosage wrong and you would end up in a coma." A familiar yet wrong voice echoes from somewhere in the room, though Quentin cannot see the speaker. "We could have gone through with our plans with you out for good, but it wouldn't have been ideal."

Footsteps draw closer but Quentin's mind refuses to believe what his eyes are telling him as the man steps into view. It's him. His own face stares back at him. He is even wearing his suit. Quentin manages to lift his head just long enough to look at himself and sees not his vestments but his bare chest and pale green pants before he lets his head fall back.

His last waking moments before he woke up in this room come back to him in a rush. Peter-no, not Peter. This man with some sort of disguise, or magic that made him appear as Peter. He keenly remembers the shock and betrayal he felt as the needle stabbed into his neck by who he had thought was Peter. But after that? He remembers nothing.

The man is now close enough to touch if he had but the strength in him to reach out. He scrutinizes the other man's face, his face. Every detail is the same, from the cut of his beard to the style of his hair he is a perfect match for Quentin. He could be staring at a mirror if it were not for the cold eyes that betray no emotion as they stare down at Quentin.

"It's weird isn't it? Almost like l am looking at myself, almost feels wrong to have drugged and chained you. Like I was doing it to myself." A smirk crosses his lips, "Almost being the key word. Apart from the name, the stunning good looks, and the habit of getting on Stark's bad side we are nothing alike.

"I mean just look at you? One of those self righteous so-called heroes in capes that steals the spotlight from good, hard working people. You have all these powers, the ability to do anything you wanted. And what did you do?" The man's cold expression morphs into one full of disgust. "You played house with a kid. You cowed and ran away like a dog being scolded when Stark called you out for your _deviance_. 

"You know what I would have done if I had your powers? The world would kneel at my feet, Stark would be begging to lick my boots. But no!" The man throws his arms up as he shouts the word spinning around the room as if speaking to an audience Quentin cannot see. "Of course only a pathetic version of me would get powers!"

The man sneers at him twisting his features into an ugly mess, a face Quentin has never made in his life. It helps his drugged mind distance himself from the man as he raves. The man spits on the ground in Quentin's direction, his face twisted with disgust.

"You sicken me. Helping old ladies cross the street?! REALLY?? That's what you chose to do with the power of a GOD?! Such a waste." The man paces back and forth for a moment before the rage subsides and he continues calm as day. As if he hadn't just been shouting and spitting poison the moment before. Even through the haze of the drugs still pumping through his system Quentin knows this man, the man that has his face, is dangerous. Unbalanced and unpredictable.

"You know before you revealed your true colors I toyed with the idea of letting you in on my grand plans. I actually thought that we could share the spotlight and rule together--but of course that isn't how life works is it? Must be some defect that goes along with wearing capes and having gifts beyond that of mortal men that makes all of you so-called 'caped crusaders' weaklings. What is it I wonder that makes all of you throw away your talents, your gifts for the sake of helping the little people instead of ruling over them?

"I just can't wrap my head around it, but I'm sure given enough time you'll be able to enlighten me. After some _encouragement_ of course." His tone is dangerous, a counterpoint to the seemingly innocent smile on his face. A chill goes down Quentin's spine as fear grips him. 

Though he had fought on occasion he spent the majority of his time as Champion building and researching technology. Even when his powers were needed he almost never had to fight against anything other than nature itself, the times he fought against extremists on Gaea were few and far between. 

To be captured by a mad man? That is something he never once thought could happen to him. He knew the people of this world were different, he had heard stories of villains who went out of their way to hunt heroes but he never thought it would happen to him. After all he hasn't even gone so far as to stop any crime during his time here. What enemies could he have?

Turns out what they say is true; he is his own worst enemy. Literally.

He would bemoan the odds of having a doppelganger so perfectly similar and yet so mad on this world, but perhaps this is all part of the balance. There can be no good without evil, no life without death. Such are the teachings of Gaea.

For him to be graced with finding his soulmate across the multiverse, perhaps this is the price he must pay for it. Or perhaps the universe has a sense of humor and he's only just now getting to the punch line. Whatever cruel twist of fate has brought him to this point it does him little good to worry about it. Not when he doesn't even know what he has been captured for, what his unbalanced doppelganger plans to do with him.

The man with his face leans over him, his breath on Quentin's face as he studies him like an insect on a pin for long moments before nodding to himself and straightening back up.

"Not feeling talkative are we?" He taunts but Quentin doubts he has the ability to speak even if he wanted to with how unresponsive his body is. "That's okay, we'll work on that on my next visit. Something for you to look forward to." The man who is him but not turns on his heel and walks behind Quentin and out of sight without another word.

**********************

"See the spike in adrenaline from fear? We got some good levels off of that even with the tranquilizers still in his system." Janice comments reading the output levels on her screen. "We'll have to experiment with other forms of stressing his system to see what works best, but even with just fear the draw will be enough to move forward during the time frame."

"Great work Janice," Beck congratulates her, "I have to get back but when he next wakes we'll begin running through the programs starting with..." Beck trails off thoughtfully a hand on his chin as he considers the man laying chained on the cot on the other side of the observation window. He rubs at his finger unused to the feeling of a ring on it when it comes to him. That would be perfect.

"Let's start him off with a little fear and a whole lot of anger shall we? How about scenario 13? After all we have no record of him losing his temper, might be a jackpot if he's repressed." Beck shakes his head with a grimace, "He seems the type, capes usually are."

"Of course." Janice responds with a nod already queuing up the program to be ready to start as soon as the drugs flush out of their captive's system.

"You're a doll," He tells her as he turns around to face the rest of the room full of his team. "Great work everyone, especially you Guterman. Tipping the lowest of the lowly paparazzi that there was a sordid side to the 'white knight' of heroes that would show itself if they hide in dark alleyways long enough? Truly inspired work, really helped to push our time table up.

"This is just the beginning of the next phase people, but already I'm feeling good about it. Soon the world of heroes stealing the spotlight and making decisions that affect every man, woman, and child without any of our say? Will be over. We've seen what having heroes running around the world does, every time you blink a new one is popping up out of the wood works messing up everything for the rest of us. 

"The snap, aliens invading New York? None of that would have happened if they had stayed away. We all suffered greatly because of a few _gifted_ people who think that just because they can fly that they are better than us?! Just because they have magic they get to decide what happens to the rest of us? 

"When our plans are complete the Era of The Avengers will be at a close, the Era of magic from any source but our own will come to an end. After all the world's heroes are gone who will the people turn to? Someone one with the skills and knowledge to lead? Or another asshole in a cape with magic? 

"Well I have a cape, and magic." He says with a sardonic smile. "Soon the world will be eating out of my hand and I'll set it back on the right path where a man is judged by merit and talent again instead of being overlooked and pushed aside for those with powers." He pauses to look at each and every member of his team making sure they are focused on his every word. 

"And who will be there by my side helping me rule from the shadows? My soon to be very wealthy team. Each and everyone of you has worked day and night for this to come together. We just have to keep it up and soon we'll be ready for the next phase to dethroning the so-called heroes and taking back control of our lives."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From here on out:
> 
> Quentin = goodie two shoes  
Beck = Big Baddie
> 
> Hope that keeps confusion to a minimum xD


	27. A Prison of My Own Making

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feeling a little rough, but here we go~

When Quentin next wakes up he can feel that the last of the drugs in his system have faded away when his eyes open easily. What he sees when his eyes open makes his heart beat quicker in his chest. He must have been moved while he slept because the once plain grey walls that had greeted him before are gone. 

He sees cobblestone walls lined with weapons ranging from half a dozen small knives, whips, canes, staves, and many other devices that are unknown to the man from another universe. This must be the 'encouragement' his doppelganger had been referring to. 

Great.

While the Champions of olden times had undergone torture at the hands of the fanatical deniers of Gaea's teachings when they were caught unawares or set upon after they expended their powers, Quentin had never experienced such things. It had been hundreds of years since the last Avatar had suffered such a fate, though Quentin knew it was an inherent danger of his station.

His heart is ice in his chest at the unknown dangers that await him. He tries to focus and push away the panic clawing at his chest by taking stock of his surroundings. The room is relatively small with only one barred door and no windows. The only light comes from torches that line the walls in the room. He looks down at himself and sees that he is still wearing pale green pants that hang low on his hips and no shirt. 

No doubt his chest has been left bare for the planned _encouragement_.

He pushes that thought away as soon as it comes. He tries to raise his arms but they don't move far. Metal clinks as he pulls and he can see that they have attached chains to his bracers that secure him to some sort of table. He moves his legs and finds them secured as well.

He tries to call his magic, can feel it move within him but it drains out of him without effect. He twists his head to look at his bracers and sees runes on the attachment points of the chain light up when he tries to draw power from within. He stops and the runes' glow fades away. He tries again, for but a moment, before giving up with a frustrated sigh. 

Quentin now knows without a doubt his doppelganger had to have gotten help to have secured devices to prevent him from using magic. He had learned about such things when staying with the sorcerers; they are rare in a way that few things truly are. They require both the other worldly vibranium, extensive knowledge in sealing runes, and the finesse to craft them-something that few would have the ability to do even with extensive study.

Looking inside himself he can feel that his power wasn't just stopped. It was drained. He had not realized such a thing was even possible. Who or whatever has taken him are dangerous beyond even his own safety if they have the ability to steal his power. 

For what purpose do they plan to use it?

How long will he be kept here as they drain him? Days? Weeks? Months? Until he draws his last breath? The thought of spending months being tortured and drained for them to amass enough of his power to wipe out the Avengers and the Sanctum in one fell swoop is beyond terrifying. At his most powerful with Gaea he has serious doubts he would have been able to take them on, but if they drained him long enough they could have more power than any being in the universe was ever meant to wield.

Based on the intricate runes on the chains they have well versed and a talented magic user or users on their side. What could they do with a near limitless battery of other worldly power at their disposal? Quentin knows not of the advanced magic of this world, but considering The Sorcerer Supreme seemed to be able to inadvertently reach into another universe when the portals appeared in Quentin's universe. . .who knows what they might plan to do. 

Although the Sorcerer Supreme had said it was not his doing, that such a thing should not have been possible, maybe someone else figured how to do it. Perhaps they would be able open portals and strand the heroes of this world on Gaea using his frequency, to find it and lock on?

A shiver runs down his spine at the thought of so many good people cursed to a fate he had once suffered himself. The shiver moves across his entire body as he pictures his sweet, innocent Peter wandering the sands of Gaea without him. Anger floods his system at the thought.

He cannot allow that to happen.

But what can he do powerless and chained to a table in some sort of a dungeon? Without his magic what can he possibly hope to achieve? 

His mind runs around in spiraling circles as he thinks up idea after idea, all of them doomed to fail. He knows not how long he lays there as his hope sinks lower and lower until he has to admit the only way he is getting out of this is if someone comes for him. He went from being the hero to being the damsel in need of rescue.

But with an impostor with his face? How long would it take for anyone to notice the difference between them? He is supposed to be in hiding anyway for the next who knows how long, and who knows what solution they will decide on with the impostor's help. 

Quentin's blood is ice in his veins just thinking about the impostor with Peter. The man is dangerous, and Peter so trusting. What with the picture fiasco going on whatever weirdness the impostor will have will likely be discounted for stress. The one person who stands the best chance of realizing that man is not the Quentin they know is also the one least likely to scrutinize his actions and words. 

Fuck.

They really did plan this well, the only hope Quentin has at this point is either the impostor making a huge misstep or praying to Gaea that the pendant's power is able to get through whatever magic inhibitors are placed on him. It's not looking good for him and those he cares for and he knows it; knows how precariously the life he's always wanted is balancing on the edge of disaster.

And there is not a damn thing he can do about it.

There is a sound of metal clinking from the door pulling him from his dark thoughts. His eyes are riveted to the door as he watches it open up and the man with his face walks in. He secures the door behind him with a loud clang before walking up to where Quentin lays with a deceptively friendly smile on his face.

"Miss me?" His tone is mocking, "Meant to come by sooner for another chat but got held up by well wishing do gooders, you know how it is."

"What do you want from me?" Quentin speaks up for the first time, his voice surprisingly strong for how weak and helpless he feels. His doppelganger smiles cruelly down at him.

"Everything. Your fame, your life, your power? It's wasted on you. Don't worry, I'll put it all to good use. I plan to burn this shit show of a world down and rebuild it into something better. The world will be my oyster, it's people will lovingly eat out of my hand when I'm through with it. They'll be grateful to have just one hero to lead them instead of warring factions that did more harm than good with their petty squabbles. 

"We tried having a world full of heroes and all you self righteous assholes did was mess it up worse than it was before. Under my rule? We will have order and lasting peace."

"You're mad if you think they won't try and stop you." The man laughs in his face.

"They can try, but it will all be over before they even know anything is wrong." The man runs his hand along Quentin's cheek in a mockery of care. Quentin turns his head away, the man's touch leaves his skin feeling dirty. "And it's all thanks to you and your miraculous appearance in our world. I had plans within plans I had been hatching ever since I learned first hand the cruelty of 'so-called heroes' but when you showed up? Everything changed.

"Just imagine my surprise to see my own face splashed over every channel? I became a household name over night, really saved me a lot of trouble doing all the PR work for me before we even began. Shame about the scandal with the kid, but it's nothing we can't handle. I've already got a half a dozen ways to spin it so I come out squeaky clean, so don't you worry your pretty little head about that.

"Just having you there laying the groundwork for me was enough of a blessing but a few months after you showed up do you know what happened? Suddenly I was getting all these strange messages and notifications on the Stark phone I had been keeping around in attempts to hack into their database. Turns out I wouldn't even have to do that much, not when I was granted honorary status as an Avenger."

"No..." Quentin's heart thunders in his chest a counterpoint to the barely there whisper of denial that escapes his lips. If this man had access to all that he would have insider knowledge, no wonder his planning was so airtight. No wonder 'Pepper' had texted him to come to this trap. How easy would it be for him to blend in when he's had over a year to spy on their interactions? His hopes for someone noticing his behavior being off plummet even further.

"Turns out Stark's AI isn't as smart as he likes to think it is. Cause you see? I am Quentin Beck. Everything you have ever done or said with your convenient Stark phone nearby? I have recorded, saved, and archived for my 'journal'. Friday was most helpful in setting that up for me, I couldn't have done it without her help.

"You see, I've been legally dead since the snap. Assumed to be one of the many, many people who died when pilots and drivers turned to dust. It was easy to fake a plane ticket on one of the flights that went down, and with the chaos afterwards no one was looking twice at the death toll to make sure everyone assumed dead actually was. Not even the great Tony Stark would think to watch out for enemies faking their deaths.

"Those who were wronged by the Avengers and other such elite clubs were quick to jump on the chance of a lifetime. So many of us were on watch lists, but through their own making they gave us a second chance. A chance to start over, band together like they had and make sure that this time? When we make our move? There will be nothing they can do to stop us."

Quentin is quiet through the man's monologue as he works to piece together the forces at work against them. A known enemy is always better than an unknown, and learning that no one would even think to expect a surprise attack from those thought long dead? It's going to be bad, really bad.

"Someone will notice you aren't me eventually, you'll slip up and they'll figure it out."

"Will they now?" The man's face has a delighted smile on it as he reaches under the armor chest piece and pulls out the locket his daughter had given to him. Quentin hadn't even realized he wasn't wearing it until this very moment and he surges against the chains that hold him as impotent rage floods his system.

"You bastard!" He yells at the man. For him to be so low as to take the last and only piece of his daughter from him is beyond human.

"In all the recordings we had you never once spoke of an exact date to mark the anniversary of little Hope's death. Too painful to talk about, no doubt, how fortunate for me. Well now it can be any time I like, thanks for that. I'm sure it will come in handy as the perfect excuse should anyone look too closely at you. 

"Poor Quentin with the dead kid, he just needs time to himself to mourn." The man says with a tilt of his head a mask of sadness over his face. "No one will think twice about any slip ups or disappearing acts." He winks at Quentin as if they are sharing a secret before his mask of sadness melts away as his grin goes wide like a shark's.

"You son of a bitch!" His blood boils in his veins when faced with the taunting smug look on his doppelganger's face. His muscles strain as he struggles uselessly against the restraints. 

"If you didn't want someone to use it against you, maybe you should have trusted those close to you with it. Why didn't you tell Peter, your soul mate? Did you not trust him with it? All your preaching about the sacred soul bond you two share and yet you didn't even trust him with something so important? Seems like you must not have cared that much after all.

"Hell, you never even talked about your wife with the kid. Which, okay I get it. It's weird to talk about the ex with the new boy toy and all. But really? It's gonna make it sooo easy for me to push him away when your 'anniversary' comes up. Don't get me wrong, he's a decent enough looking _kid_ but I'm not as twisted as you to fall for the jail bait. Thankfully your oversight will make pushing his unwanted advances away without blowing my cover even easier."

His twisted doppelganger laughs in his face when Quentin curses him until his face is flushed red with rage. 

"Don't worry, I won't push him too far away. I have plans for him after all, just want to keep my moral high ground of at least having the decency to not take advantage of a kid."

"Stay away from him!"

"Yell, scream, and thrash all you want. In fact? I encourage it, but it will do you no good. I will do whatever I want and there isn't a single thing you can do about it. But you should know, my plans for Peter? They aren't pretty, which is too bad because he seems a decent enough kid. One of the few heroes who at least has the sense to keep his nose out of most things. It's really too bad you got him involved with your sordid little affair with the Stark ward.

"I want you to know that what will happen to him? You're the one who forced my hand in it. If you had just stayed away from him like a decent, moral adult I could have turned a blind eye to him. He could rescue cats from trees in Queens all he likes for all that I cared, but you? You just couldn't help yourself could you? On one hand I get flipping the finger at Stark's interfering, but really? Messing around with his kid? That's low even for me.

"But in a way I should thank you for your inability to control your baser desires. It's opened up some interesting doors I would not have even have thought of." The monster with his face glances to the side and nods at something or someone Quentin cannot see behind him. "But that's a discussion for another day. Seems like Mrs. Potts has really outdone herself and is ready to move forward. Which means I have a date with your boy toy. I'll be sure to pass along your love to him."

The monster's laughter echoes in the room long after he's gone at the fit of uncontrollable fury that over takes Quentin at the thought of that monster being in the same room as Peter. 

*******************

"Looks like you were right again, the levels we got are off the charts. If he keeps this up we'll have more than we need in less than a quarter of the time." Janice informs Beck as he walks by her station.

"I'm always right, never doubt that. But this? This is even better than I was hoping. I'll call our associate and tell him the good news when I get back from my meeting with Stark's better half and his super son. Shouldn't take too long to convince them to follow our plan. I am part of the family after all."


	28. Along Came Mr. Beck

Peter sits at the table with Pepper, his knee bouncing a mile a minute as he waits, and waits, and waits. It feels like half an eternity since he last saw Quentin even though in reality it has only been four days. He pulls out his phone for the hundredth time to check the time but somehow time seems to have completely stopped. He swears he checked it 10 minutes ago but it hasn't even been a minute yet.

How is that possible?

With a sigh of frustration he turns the screen back off and puts his phone away. Clearly it isn't helping to make the time pass any faster as they wait for Quentin to show up. He had said that he got caught up with some sorcerer business but would be meeting them just as soon as he was done. 

That was an hour ago and even though Peter knows, he knows he has nothing to worry about he can't shake the feeling that something bad has happened. Maybe he got stuck in traffic? Or maybe he's got caught up with some super cool magical stuff and lost track of time. He has nothing to worry about, he tells himself. Yet the feeling refuses to listen.

Another five minutes go by before the door is swinging open and the man that he loves is walking through the door. Peter is on his feet and running up to him without making the conscious decision to do so. Quentin turns around and for a split second there is a flash of something in his eyes that Peter has never seen before, but it's gone between one blink and the next before his face breaks into a warm smile.

He opens his arms wide and catches Peter as he throws himself into his arms. Quentin is stiff against him for a moment before he loosens up and holds onto Peter just as tightly.

"I missed you so much." Quentin whispers into his hair, his breath hot on Peter's ear sending a shiver down the teen's spine. 

"I missed you too." Peter replies before leaning up to steal Quentin's lips in a kiss. Quentin jerks minutely in surprise before returning the kiss, but he adamantly does not let Peter deepen it. Peter pulls back to look at Quentin in confusion but his lover's eyes glance over towards Pepper in lieu of an explanation.

"Oh right, sorry." Peter says with his face beet red, he had forgotten she was in the room in his excitement at seeing Quentin again after four whole days apart.

"It's alright Peter, I feel the same. But, maybe we shouldn't be in the habit of kissing so openly, it is what got us into this mess after all." Shame color's Peter's face, he knows this. It was all his fault, Quentin had told him over and over not to blame himself but it was his hormones that got them in this. He just always has to push Quentin for more, can't be happy with how things are. 

So greedy Parker, and look where it's gotten you.

Pepper coughs politely from where she has gotten up from her chair. Peter steps away from Quentin reluctantly but Quentin catches his hand in his own with a soft smile. Together they walk hand in hand back to the table and sit when Pepper motions for them to do so.

"Mrs. Potts." Quentin greets with an inclination of his head, "From the bottom of my heart I must thank you, from the both of us, for helping take care of this." Pepper smiles at him warmly.

"I told you, you're part of the Avenger family and we take care of our own. While it wasn't what I was planning to do this week, at least it got me out of a few boring shareholder meetings I had been dreading." 

She opens her bag and pulls out a few folders with papers and passes them to Quentin to look at. He flips through them with interest as she explains how the different media outfits have portrayed the leaked photo of them. Some are bad, like the Daily Bugle Blog, others are far more kind. Overall the people's reactions to the photo are hopefully optimistic about the 'budding heroic romance' or withholding judgement until more comes out.

"Judging off of knee jerk reactions the two of you could decide to come out openly about your relationship and I feel confident there wouldn't be riots in the streets. Sure, the more conservative ones would spew hate over the fact that you both are men but there is no avoiding that. Doing that would put you under the microscope though Peter. Every news outlet in town would be itching to get the scoop on who is under the mask."

Peter's pulse rockets and he squeezes Quentin's hand where it holds his own under the table. He looks over at Quentin who gives him a reassuring smile and a gentle squeeze back.

"I won't do anything that would compromise Peter's safety and well being. He has a secret identity for a reason and I won't have him throwing that away for me." Peter's heart flutters in his chest, he knew, has always known that Quentin would never put him in a position to make that choice but hearing it is a great relief.

"That is perfectly fine and understandable. I know from personal experience the hell that goes on when you're out of the hero closet so to speak." She says with a knowing smile, "Another option available is throwing out a wall of 'no comment' until, eventually, the excitement dies off. That would require the two of you to not have any more. . ._accidents_ and be on your best behaviors."

"That won't be a problem, will it Peter?" Quentin says with a teasing tilt of his lips. Peter's face goes red, but Quentin gives him a wink to soften the blow of his words.

"No Ma'am. I promise to keep my hands to myself and no more surprise kisses in public, no matter how dark it is out, or how unlikely it seems anyone would catch us. Scouts honor." Peter crosses his heart with his free hand as he swears it.

"And you Quentin?" Pepper asks with a smiling already knowing she can trust the man from another universe to not endanger Peter any further.

"As much as that surprise kiss was amazing," Peter's ears turn red at the compliment, "you have nothing to worry about on my end. I'll be the perfect gentleman."

"Glad to hear it boys." Her facial expression turns apologetic after a small pause. "But it would be best if you two weren't seen together in the meantime while we wait for the public to lose interest."

"I figured as much," Quentin begins turning to look at Peter with a small sad smile curving his lips. "Just four days and already I missed you like it has been a year, but at least we can still call and talk all we want right?" 

Peter squeezes Quentin's hand again as he tries to school his disappointed expression. It feels like they've just barely got back on track and now they'll have to be apart again. His lover is right though, it won't be bad since they can call each other right? That's way, way better than before right? Besides, it's not like there won't be an end in sight.

He can handle being lonely for a few weeks if he knows at the end he'll get to have Quentin again. They'll have to be careful from now on, but really the fact that they got a second chance at all should be enough for Peter. How many couples break up before they even get together like they did? 

Peter's free hand moves to his chest over the pendant under his shirt, it's weight is a constant comfort to the young man. It is proof, tangible, undeniable proof of their love. What is a few weeks of loneliness in the face of that?

Quentin's blue eyes flick down and stare intently at where Peter's hand rests over his heart, over their connection. Peter moves his hand away as he pulls his other one up still holding Quentin's and places it over his heart. Blue eyes meet his own and Peter offers the other man a tender smile.

"We'll be fine, because in the end? We are meant to be together, always have been I guess. So like, I guess if it's fated or whatever why worry? Still not really sure on how soul mates work to be honest, but we managed to find each other when you were from another universe. So. . ." Peter takes a deep breath as he struggles to get his point across, "What I'm trying to say is what's another few weeks or even months when we will have the rest of our lives together right?"

Quentin is silent for a long moment before he reaches over and pulls the smaller man against him in a hug just this side of crushing. He grips the back of Peter's neck as he presses him against his chest and presses a kiss into the top of Peter's head. 

"You're something else Peter, I really don't deserve you." Peter pulls back and looks up at Quentin.

"Sure you do, you're amazing! Like I can't believe that you fell for me sometimes. I mean, just look at you! Not that it's just your looks or anything of course, your mind is just as hot as your body." There is a muffled laugh from across the table where Pepper is struggling to keep the giggles in and failing. "Aaaand I forgot Mrs. Potts was here again. I'm soooo sorry. I'm just going to shut up now."

Pepper gives up even trying to muffle her laughter and lets out a big bark of laughter, but it's not mocking, nor cruel. Her laughter is bright and full of affection. 

It's infectious and soon all three of them are sharing a laugh at the situation they are in. As embarrassed as Peter is at pouring his heart out in front of her, he has to admit it was pretty funny. It really helps to lighten the somber mood that had fallen over the room. Without speaking they all somehow seem to agree that it is the perfect tone to end the meeting on; lighthearted and hopeful. 

They all share a laugh and the two men share one last long hug and another chaste kiss before going their separate ways. Peter watches Quentin's back as the man is the first to leave, he tosses one last look full of longing over his shoulder at Peter before he is out the door. As the door swings shut behind him Peter can't shake the feeling of loss that overcomes him. After every bit of reassurance he said, he's still going to miss Quentin fiercely.

****************

It's not often Beck feels remorseful for the things he does, for the things he is going to have to do, but after the door swings shut behind him he feels the beginning tinges of it. This was the first time he's ever been face to face with the kid and despite the gray area of the age difference he can see why his counterpart likes the kid.

Hell, he likes the kid. He's just so genuine and heartfelt. It's a shame what he'll have to do to the kid, he's one of the few real innocents in this. Poor kid has got to have the world's worst luck to be both Stark's ward AND his counterpart’s love interest. Beck won't feel good about what will happen to the kid, but can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs.

There will be hundreds of innocent lives lost to make his grand plans come to fruition, but it is a small price to pay for achieving his dreams. For dethroning the unworthy 'heroes' of this world and taking his rightful place as the new leader. 

He spares but one singular moment to feel bad about Peter before he discards the feeling like so much trash. His lips then curve into a smile as he plans out just how he's going to use this against the other Quentin.

Oh yes, he can just picture the unbridled fury that will twist that handsome face when he tells him how sweet the boy's lips tasted. He mentally takes a note to push forward calling The Baron and informing him they will be able to move up their plans with how much power they are able to get from the impotent rage of their captive. A limitless supply of power with the barest minimum of effort on his part.

He had thought he would need to use torture programs and his illusion tech to get the emotions they would need to draw out his power, but as it turns out? Reality is far more cruel than what they had come up with. All he has to do is tell the truth and the chained man will be thrashing against the restraints in his efforts to get at Beck. 

Beck smiles brightly as he walks through the door to his counterpart’s holding cell. It's almost too easy, like taking candy from a baby. He tells Janice to drop the illusion, they don't need it after all. Besides the dungeon chic is so not his style. He watches as his captive blinks around the room really seeing it for the first time. The clinical plexiglas walls have their own psychological appeal, there is no illusion of privacy here now. 

Their captive is on display 24/7, there is nothing the cameras on the drones stationed in and out of the room can't see. Beck prefers the sleek and modern look over that of the dated dungeon they were using anyway. It's not like they'll need it after all, he thinks with a cruel smile as he sees the man's heart rate spike on a monitor.

"Oh Quentin, you never told me how _sweet_ little Peter was. . ."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy holidays to those who celebrate! <3 <3 <3


	29. Peter Tingle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the massive delay, but uhhh here ya go I guess. 
> 
> This ain't pretty, but I might release an extra to this story later in the week so y'all can have something _nice_ for the holidays haha my bad.

Peter can't shake the feeling that something is gravely wrong in the coming weeks. Quentin has been avoiding him, no two ways about it. He's cancelled and dodged his calls left and right, there are only so many times Peter can believe the excuse of 'wizard business' before he has to call BS.

"Something is up with him Ned, he's never been like this before. At least not since well, you know, when he ran away to China -- but why would he do that now? Like I totally get we have to be careful and stuff cause of the news but like not even answering my calls? Something is going on and he's not talking to me!" Peter tells Ned as he paces in his room in frustration.

"Have you called him out on it?" Ned, ever the cool head in the room asks.

"Well, no." Peter admits sheepishly. 

"Then just ask him dude. Maybe it's just him being overprotective with making sure you don't catch flak or something. I donno."

"Maybe, I mean yeah he can get pretty over protective." Peter pulls out the pendant and waves it at Ned. "I mean he did give me this and I haven't had any problems with any big bad guys in a long time." 

Peter said he would respect Quentin's privacy, but just a peek wouldn't hurt right? It's not like Quentin has ever gotten mad at him or expressly told him to _not_ use the pendant to check up on him. . .right? He just wants, no needs some idea of what is going on with his boyfriend before he starts an uncomfortable conversation that more than likely ends with his foot in his mouth. Closing his eyes Peter concentrates seeking out Quentin's feelings but the green light flickers and goes out and he gets nothing. 

That's never happened before. Not even when Quentin was hiding from him or busy with the earthquake in Hong Kong. What the hell.

He tries sending through his own feelings but it feels like he's hitting a brick wall. What the hell is going on? 

"What's wrong Peter?" Ned asks, giving his friend a concerned look. 

"It's not working. It's never not worked before, something serious is going on Ned and I need to find out now." Peter drops the pendant back down and pulls out his phone hitting the speed dial for Quentin and it rings and rings and rings. Five rings go by and Peter's heart sinks, but on the seventh the call goes through.

"Hello?" Quentin's deep voice on the other side is tinged with something resembling annoyance and it makes Peter totally lose his cool.

"We need to talk. **Now**." Peter says into the phone his voice deadly serious. There is a beat of silence on the other side and then a soft sigh.

"I'll be right over." Click. Not even a goodbye before he hung up, great. At least Peter knows now beyond a shadow of a doubt that something serious is going on.

"So. . .?" Ned asks, Peter sighs as he puts his phone away.

"He's coming over and we're going to talk. God Ned, this all just feels so wrong. He's never like this, I'm really worried."

"Well look on the bright side either way you're gonna know and at least you won't have to worry about it anymore right? You're a mess Peter, even on the best of days, but I don't like seeing you so torn up over this. Whatever happens I have your back. Besides, you two are like soul mates or whatever, so it's fate right? So whatever happens I'm sure you two can work it out once you actually sit down and talk about it. I don't really know how the soul mates thing is supposed to work but at least you got that going for you right?"

"Yeah, I hope so." Peter says with a sigh, he doesn't really know how it works either but the fact that they were destined for each other has got to count for something right?

Ned leaves after he makes Peter swear up and down to call him the second after he gets things sorted with Quentin. Peter promises and tells his friend how much his support means to him, how much it's always meant to him. When Peter had no one else, he had Ned in his corner.

As soon as his friend leaves Peter resumes pacing the apartment while he waits for Quentin. He runs through a hundred, a thousand ways this might go. Has imaginary conversations in his head with Quentin to prepare himself, but he knows full well as soon as Quentin is standing before him the words he's been practicing will leave him and he'll be his normal chaotic mess. He doesn't do confrontations, he always ends up rambling out half of one sentence and another neither of them making sense.

He can only hold onto the hope that his boyfriend won't make it hard on him, that he'll just come right out and admit what is wrong, what is going on without making Peter struggle through trying to ask. They promised each other when they got back together? Got together? Either way, they promised each other they wouldn't hide anything from each other anymore. That they'd talk it out so they wouldn't have a disaster like the last time.

So why is Quentin hiding things now? What could be so wrong or important that he would break his word? Peter worries his lip between his teeth as he watches the seconds, the minutes tick by on the clock. Quentin should have been here by now if he flew, hell last time they had a big issue he had a wizard magic him to Peter the very instant, so why is it taking so long?

Especially if he really has been busy with the wizards and it wasn't all a lie. He'd be right next to any number of people who could get him here, so why isn't he here yet? 

Another 15 minutes goes by before there is a knock at his door. Peter's lips twist in a frown, why would he come to the front door and not just fly in through the window? Sure they are supposed to be laying low but surely he could have flown high and come straight down to Peter's apartment without much of any risk of being seen. This whole thing stinks of something wrong.

Peter shrugs his shoulders and lets out a long sigh. At least he'll find out now one way or another. He walks to the door and opens it to find a guilty looking Quentin standing in his doorway. Peter doesn't even say anything as he lets the other man inside before closing the door behind him and walking to the middle of the room with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He motions for Quentin to take a seat on the couch with his head and the other man obeys meekly.

He knows he's in trouble, good. Peter lets him stew in it for a moment while he looks down at him. His eyes are down cast and he looks defeated as he slumps into his seat. He looks up at Peter and opens his mouth but Peter silences him with a raised hand.

"I don't want to hear whatever lie you have ready, I don't want to hear any apologies. I just want the truth. You've been avoiding me, lying to me, and I want to know why. So, spill." Peter is secretly very proud of himself for getting that out without stuttering or messing it up, but he keeps it to himself only letting the anger he feels show on his face.

"You're right Peter." Peter's heart sinks at the admission even as he feels vindication at hearing his boyfriend's soft spoken admission. "I have been avoiding you, more than we had to because of the whole media thing. I have been doing very important work with the wizards, but mostly it's been an excuse."

"An excuse for what? Why are you hiding from me? Why can't I feel you anymore?" Peter demands.

"I-I put a block on it, I didn't -- I didn't want you to feel this. To feel what I'm feeling. It's ugly and private, I didn't want you to have any part in it." Quentin's blue eyes are full of sorrow as he glances up at Peter before lowering his eyes to the carpet once more. Despite how angry Peter is, he can't help but feel empathy for the other man who is obviously going through something right now.

Peter kneels down on the carpet and puts his hands on the other man's knees causing him to look up at Peter once more. His eyes shine with unshed tears and Peter's heart tugs in his chest wanting to help his hurting lover.

"What's wrong? Please just tell me." Peter begs softly and Quentin's face crumples as his hold on his emotions fails. He reaches into his hoodie and pulls out a golden locket and Peter's eyes widen. Oh no.

"It's-- It was --" Quentin's voice breaks as he struggles to get the words out. He swallows trying to wet his suddenly dry throat before he tries again. "It was Ho-Hope's birthday. At least it would have been if. . .if I had been stronger, if I hadn't failed her like I failed so many."

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Peter hadn't even thought about that, he's so damn self centered and selfish he had almost forgotten Quentin was a father. All this time Peter had been angry, thinking Quentin was hiding something that had to do with him or their relationship, he never once even considered how much the other man had lost. 

Peter feels like the biggest asshole in the multiverse right now. Here he was getting all butt hurt cause he wasn't getting enough attention like a spoiled kid when the person who needs him the most is hurting. Way to go Parker, and you wonder why everyone always treats you like a kid when you act like one.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry Quentin. I-I didn't know." Peter starts his hands gripping the other man's knees tightly trying to convey his support through the contact.

"I know. I, I didn't. I never talked about it. It's not your fault Peter." Quentin tells him, putting the locket safely back under his hoodie and out of sight. "I just-- God Peter, I had hoped that maybe, just maybe it wouldn't be so bad this time. That maybe after nearly six years it would have gotten easier but-- but I was wrong.

"I shouldn't have hidden it from you, but this pain I feel? This gaping hole in my heart? It's something I have to live with, my penance for failing her. It didn't seem right to burden you with it. But instead, God I hurt you Peter, just like I hurt everyone with my good intentions."

"No, no, no! This isn't your fault Quentin, jeez I should have-- I shouldn't have been so selfish and when I saw the signs of something being wrong I should have asked right now instead of getting mad and assuming it was about me. You don't have to go through this alone, I'm here for you. Always, anything you need. Please let me help you." Peter begs bringing his hands up to cup Quentin's face.

Quentin's eyes are screwed tightly shut and its clear he's fighting back tears. He should just let it out, there is no shame in grieving for those lost, something Peter learned after losing Ben. He leans in and presses his lips against Quentin's forehead willing the other man to let go, and he does.

A choking sob escapes the older man's lips at the tender kiss and Peter suddenly finds himself wrapped in a crushing hug that he returns just as strongly. Peter holds onto the other man as he lets out his sorrow and soaks the front of Peter's shirt with his tears. The teen rubs the larger man's back and whispers soothing nonsense into his hair much like the other man has done for him in the past. 

As much as it is awful to witness his lover in so much pain Peter is glad to be able to be here for him. To hold and give what little comfort and support he can. It makes Peter heartbroken to realize the other man must have gone through this alone all these years, he can't even imagine how awful it must have been. It's a testament to just how strong of a person Quentin is to have gone through all this on his own without giving up.

The few times the other man has talked about his time wandering the wastes of Gaea he was quick to say he wouldn't have lasted without Gaea there to keep him sane but Peter never really understood just what that might have meant until now. 

To have shouldered the responsibility of an entire planet and not been strong enough? To have that weight on him and no one to share it with, no one to even talk to about it? 

It really was a miracle he made it at all, but Peter is so grateful he managed it. He swears to the other man that he'll make sure he doesn't have to go through that alone again, that he will be here for him no matter what. Whatever he needs. If he needs to be alone to grieve Peter will understand. He'll respect it and be there for him when he's ready to talk again.

They lay there entangled on the floor for a long, long time until Quentin has cried himself out and regained his composure. He tries to apologize but Peter silences him with a tender kiss and just tells him it's okay, he doesn't need to say anything. 

"I might still need some time. To work through this. On my own." Quentin admits not meeting Peter's eyes but the teen just turns his head with a gentle touch on his chin.

"Take all the time you need, just I don't know. Let me know you're okay occasionally please?" Peter begs him with sad eyes. Quentin leans in and presses a lingering kiss against Peter's forehead before he steps back with a sad smile on his lips.

"God I love you Peter, you're too good for me. I promise I'll try not to worry you anymore okay?" Peter's cheeks tint at the declaration of love from the other man. It's the first time he's outright said he loves him and yeah okay, Peter has known the guy loves him, has felt it over their connection clear as day but there is something special about hearing the words said out loud for the first time.

"I love you too." He whispers out before stealing a kiss from the other man before watching his lover's back as he retreats down the hallway.

************** 

As the elevator doors close behind Beck the slump in his shoulders and the love sick expression melts off his face. A cruel smirk takes its place and there is a positively delighted sparkle in his eyes. That went better than he could have hoped. There is a bounce in his step as he gets off the elevator, he can't wait to get back and see how much they get off this one. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo so like I did a word search and I never had Quentin say "I love you" straight out to Peter??? WTF so I guess my mistake is going to be something for Beck to capitalize on now. 
> 
> XD Whoopsey daisy.


	30. Breaking The Broken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one fought me hard, kept making it too dark and had to go back and rewrite it a bajillion times. 
> 
> It's not perfect by any meaning of the word, but it'll do and I want to get a move on with this story. Only a few more chapters left for the big finale and finish. ^_____^

Every day is a new lesson in suffering as the monster, not a man-- the cruelty he is capable of makes him a beast -- with his face comes to taunt Quentin. He delights in tormenting Quentin with tales of his time with Peter. The sick bastard gets real enjoyment from watching Quentin struggle against his restraints as he curses him. Quentin isn't stupid, he knows every time he loses control of his emotions he's furthering along the man's plans but he can't help it when the man knows all his buttons and just how to push them.

". . .Just look at this picture he sent me last night, such a sweet thing isn't he?"

"Hold on he's calling, I better step out and take this. . ."

Those were bad enough but one day Beck walked in with a spring in his step and a delighted expression that Quentin knew would spell trouble for him, but he had no idea how bad it would really be until he spoke.

"Our boy Peter was starting to catch on that something was wrong, but then I gave him the sob story about poor Hope and he ate it up. Hell, he cuddled me so sweetly and tenderly for hours after a few crocodile tears and a confession of love from your's truly? He was sold hook, line, and sinker. From the look on his face I think it was the first time he's heard those words, you really are a shitty person to haven't have said it out right by now." The monster with his face gives him a shark's smile, all full of teeth. 

"It's a good thing I was there to tell him what you should have said long ago if you really were so-called soul mates. I may be a villain, but you're a real piece of work yourself."

That last one got Quentin so worked up he ended up passing out from strain of so much of his energy being drained at one time. He was left alone for a few days while his energy reserves built back up. No point in taunting him if they don't get anything from it apparently.

After he woke up from that ordeal his emotions, his mind, and his very soul felt muted, drained, diminished. The thought of his Peter in that monster's arms, unknowingly giving comfort to someone so cruel and cold broke something in Quentin. He had reached his limit and everything became shades of grey.

He felt hopeless, helpless, and worst of all: useless. He could do nothing for his lover, if fact with every day that went by just by being alive he was hurting him. With every loss of control, with every outburst he was aiding the very people whose goal was to hurt his lover, their friends, and their families. 

Black thoughts swirled endlessly in his mind and he couldn't help but believe the only thing he could do to help was to die but he couldn't even do that. He refused food and water but they intubated him and forced nutrients into his body against his will. He cried silently for long hours until his tears eventually ran out along with his will to fight against this. To fight against them so he accepted the food given, though it was naught but dust in his mouth. 

His doppelganger's visits started to become fewer and farther between as he lost the ability to get a rise out of the broken man. Quentin had given up, the monster's plans were too well thought out, as if every conceivable contingency was predicted and planned for accordingly. What good was it to fight against someone who was him but far more cunning and vile? The man didn't have powers, nor magic but his will to do whatever it took, no matter how atrocious the act to get what he wanted? It was more powerful and effective than Quentin could have ever imagined.

At times he cursed the fact that there were no true villains in his world, he had no idea what was lying in wait for him here. Maybe if he had some idea, maybe if he hadn't let himself fall into a false sense of safety here he could have prevented this. . .maybe he could save Peter from whatever fate that monster has planned for him.

But he didn't. He couldn't. He can't.

Instead he was the perfect gullible tool to wield against the Avengers. No one would expect anything from the lonely man from a dead universe who wouldn't even go so far as to get involved with violence unless his hand was forced. Unless it was the fate of the universe at stake -- and even then he's failed before. 

A wolf in sheep's skin waiting to prey upon those Quentin held most dear.

*****************

After several unproductive visits from his captor something unexpected happens, his chains are given slack and the manacles on his feet are released. He wakes up and doesn't notice it for a time, they must have done it when he had eventually succumbed to sleep the night before. Looking around the room warily he doesn't know what to think at first. 

Was it a mistake? Or far more likely is this a trick? They can make him see and hear anything they want in this room, though it has been sometime since they needed to use illusions against him he can't rule it out. Forcing the beginnings of hope down so that he won't give them anything when it fails he wiggles his feet.

It is no illusion, the manacles that had dug into his skin and rubbed it raw for untold amounts of time are open. His heart beats louder in his chest as he slowly, oh so slowly slides his feet off of the table that he has been bound to for what feels like half a lifetime until they reach the cold floor.

He wobbles as he gets to his feet after so long of being strapped down to the table his legs don't want to support even his diminished weight. He dares not let hope grow in his chest, he can't risk it. 

Like a long caged beast when freedom is presented he stays inside not trusting it. He looks about the room, eyes filled with distrust for long minutes until he takes a deep breath and steps away from the table for the first time and nothing happens. He waits for the monster with his face to come in and taunt him and call him a fool, but no one comes.

He walks across the room to the door but the chains grow taut before he reaches it. Of course it wouldn't be that easy. Even if he could reach it must be locked, he's disappointed but not surprised. This little taste of _freedom_ is just that. A taste, something to give him hope so they can take it away again. 

He walks around the plain room made of unbreakable glass running his fingers along every surface he can reach, finally able to feel the prison that surrounds him. He notes that there is a bathroom, no privacy to be had of course, but that is a sight better than the shame filled way they were handling things before. . .

There is even a shower and his chains are just long enough that he could use it. He has been wallowing in his filth for weeks, maybe months. He's not really sure how much time has passed with no clocks and only the visits from Beck to mark what he thinks are days. Even if this is a trap, a trick to get him to feel again he doesn't care. He can't stand one more minute of being filthy, it reminds him too much of his time wandering Gaea's wastes so he slides the pale green pants off his hips and lets them fall to the cold floor.

He gets into the shower and twists the nobs, there is no hot water, not that he expected there to be, so a stream of ice cold water hits him straight on the chest. There is no soap that he can see so he just rubs and scrapes at his skin with his hands and nails as best he can to get the sweat off his body.

His fingers are numb and his skin burns with pins and needles by the time he finishes, but it doesn't bother him. There is nothing for him to dry off and nothing clean to change into, but he doesn't care . The time to be self conscious has long past and he has no qualms about standing around buck naked if he has to. He's being treated no better than a farm animal whose entire life is spent in a milking station so why not act the part?

Wandering about the room he pays careful attention to everything in it, which is to say there is nothing in it save the little toilet, shower, and the table he can't even stand to look at for more than a moment. He pulls at the chains and examines the holes in the floor under the table they come from. They must be connected to whatever device is draining his power below this room but he can't see anything in the dark holes.

There is a sound across the room from the door that makes Quentin spin on his heels with the slack of the chain in his hands ready to fight. To try and strangle the life out of anyone who would be foolish enough to walk through the door with him free like this but the door doesn't open.

Instead a slot he had not noticed before now opens up at the bottom and a plastic tray with clothes is pushed through. He sits on the hunches of his feet ready to spring forward or away, but the tray is pulled back once the contents have been dropped to the floor and the slot closes back up. 

Cautiously he walks over to the clothes eyes fixed on the door as he crouches down to pick up the clothes before scurrying back toward the middle of the room. He looks down and sees they have given him identical pale green pants and underwear. No shirt, not that he could put a shirt on with his arms bound as they are, but the underwear will be nice. As he finishes pulling the pants over his hips the slot opens up again this time spilling packaged food and a bottle of water onto the floor.

As he eats the bland food the image of a pig at a feeding trough comes to mind. That's what he is now, no better than livestock that is kept only for the products it produces. He hasn't produced anything for them in over a week so now they must be trying to 'fatten' him up so they can drain him. It makes him want to throw the food against the wall in defiance but he knows that would give them something so he just quietly finishes eating and returns to examining the chains that bind him and the many runes now that he can see them better.

They are advanced, far more advanced than what the Sorcerer Supreme had taught him, he has no hopes of understanding their inner workings. Not that if he understood he could do anything without his magic. The spell work in the runes is not too different from those made by the Sorcerer Supreme's hand on his bracers, in fact some symbols are vaguely similar.

When Stephen had begun teaching him the ways of this world's magic he spent a great deal of time explaining in detail how his bracers work and what each rune does. Some draw energy from Quentin's magic to be used by other runes to keep him on this universe's frequency, but they only take the smallest amounts of his energy unlike the more complex runes that steal as much power as he has to give that adorn the chains binding him.

Stephen had even taught him how to make the runes needed to remove the bracers, though he strongly advised to not do so unless under dire circumstances, and at the time Quentin had not seen any reason he should ever want them off. After all, without them he'd phase back out of this universe and be lost where not even one as knowledgeable as The Sorcerer Supreme would know where to look. 

Lost to the Ether, he said. If Quentin could form the runes to take them off he would do it this very instant, but he has no magic to make them and just drawing the symbols would do no good without the power needed to activate them. He spends long hours just staring at his hands, hands that once held so much power but are now so weak.

*******************

A week goes by with his new routine of being fed and clothed before something changes. He wakes up one morning and the once lax chains are tightly secured to the table, though he does not remember going to sleep on it. He hates the table and had chosen to sleep on the floor so they must have moved him while he slept. 

He doesn't have to wait long before the door is opening and in walks Beck in his vestments sipping a green drink through a straw. He waves at Quentin and swallows before he speaks. 

"Hey sorry I haven't dropped by in a while, it's been busy being you lately. You know how it is right? Well anyway I thought I'd check in, see how you're doing. I can smell you've made use of the shower, thank you for that. It was almost torture to be in the same room with you before." 

The sound of his voice grates on Quentin's nerves, he'll never be able to hear himself again without getting angry. The man is so full of himself and cocky, but maybe he has every right to be. All his planning and work has paid off, he's taken over Quentin's life and no one is the wiser, and soon he may very well get everything he's ever wanted. 

Quentin has never once wanted to murder someone in cold blood before, but he'd gladly trade his soul to wrap his chains around that monster's throat. 

"Aww still going with the silent treatment are we? Even after all the amenities we have so graciously provided you? Ungrateful, but it's alright, soon you won't matter at all." Beck stops to take another sip of his drink and gestures widely with it in his hands. "We're in the home stretch now! Just a few minor details to iron out and we won't even need you anymore, isn't that great news?" 

Quentin remains silent, he's learned not getting a reaction bothers the showboating man. There isn't much he can do, but he'll do what he can to annoy the bastard. Beck's mouth twists into a frown. 

"No? Nothing? I thought you would be happy to hear that you'll never have to see this much better version of yourself again. We already got all the juice we needed off you during your last outburst, everything else since then has just been icing on the cake. After I leave today and set the plan in motion you won't be my problem anymore. We'll be handing you over to the Baron. . .and let me tell you that guy?" Quentin leans in like he's sharing a secret, his expression apologetic. 

"He's twisted. The plans he has for you?" His face twists in distaste and a small amount of pity, "Well let's just say you might want to just off yourself instead." 

The man with his face makes a show of surprise and reaches into his pocket and pulls out a box. 

"Oh I almost forgot, how silly of me. Today is a very special day after all, it's the day we get married! How do you like the ring we picked out?" Beck opens the box revealing a red and blue ring with a small green stone set in the middle. "Our PR team decided to go big or go home. The mixed colors of Spider Man and Mysterio is sure to be a romantic hit, what do you think? Think Peter will like it?" 

The man laughs as Quentin's face goes red and the emotions that he had thought dead rise back up. 

"You wouldn't!" 

"Oh I would, and I will. You see there was always a catch with Stark Industries, if I killed Stark and his family off it would just be given to the board and investors, and I always thought it would be such a waste. I could do so much more, change the very shape of the world if I had that kind of resources at my disposal. . ." The man trails off with a burning fire in his eyes that Quentin has learned only ever shows itself when he thinks of Stark. The man blinks a few times and the fire is gone as quickly as it came. "But then you and your soul-mate fueled romance with his kid came along and well? That's too golden of an opportunity to pass up! 

"Oh come on now don't get yourself so worked up, I'm not planning on keeping him around. Just need footage for the masses to make it seem more legit. I'll propose, have a fabricated emergency to take me away so he doesn't get any ideas of 'taking it to the next level' and while I'm gone? Well my people will have already submitted the signed documents I got 'Pepper' to give him a few days back and it will be legal! 

"After that? Well let's just say he'll be out of the picture and I'll be next in line to inherit Stark Industries. Actually do feel a little bad about that one, he is a good kid and it's not his fault but can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs as they say. And really? It's better this way, he's too close and would catch on eventually and that would ruin everything we all have worked so hard for these past years and I can't have that." 

"You'll die before you can harm him." Quentin promises. He **vows** though he knows not how he could follow through trapped as he is. But he must! This cannot happen, he can't lose Peter. 

"Oh really? And just how are you going to _anything_ trapped here? You've been here for months while I've been playing house with him, nothing's changed." Beck puts the box with the ring back in his pocket with a smirk. "I win. You lose. All of you so-called heroes are going to lose in a few short hours and there isn't. A. Single. Thing. you can do about it. Just like when your world burned around you as you watched helpless, I'll let you watch as I burn this one down and create it anew in my image. 

"Don't worry, I'm no short sighted titan hell bent on wanton destruction, I'll make something great of this world-- you'll see it. Consider it a parting gift, you'll be able to see that something beautiful born from your sacrifice this time. Unless you decide to off yourself before, up to you." Beck says with a shrug as if he could not care either way. "Well as fun as this hasn't been I really must be going. Have people to marry, regimes to overthrow, and a world to rule." 

Quentin bites through his cheek to hold his tongue, not wanting to give the other man the satisfaction of his reaction. A petty, small victory-- but it may well be his only one. Beck looks slightly disappointed in him for the lack of response but simply shrugs and turns to leave the room tossing out a casual "Don't have too much fun without me." over his shoulder as he leaves. 

Once Quentin is sure the other man has left he lets out a shout, a scream born of pure frustration of his situation. He yells until there is no air in his lung and he is left panting, gasping for breath where he lies on the table. A soft click hits his ears after his tantrum and he feels slack in his chains once more. 

A mockery of kindness that he resents. For a moment he remains where he lies on the table that has haunted his nightmares and his every waking moment feeling despondent. He tastes his own blood in his mouth from holding in his words around the other man, it is bitter but good in a way he does not understand at first. The metallic taste coats his tongue, but there is more to it beyond that of it's taste that sparks something in him he thought dead. 

The smallest blossom of hope raises in his chest, perhaps there is another way. A forbidden thing not done in half a millennia, too barbaric, too dangerous. Not the people of this world, nor his own would stoop to it's lows unless in times of crisis and savagery not seen since their people first became civilized. 

But Quentin is no better than an animal backed into a corner with no hope of escape. His 'pack' in imminent danger and he is the only one who stands a chance of saving them. A faint smile curves his lips, the decision already made. Any pack animal, and that is what humans are at their core underneath the fancy tools and clothing, would sacrifice it's life to protect their own without a moment of hesitation. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably won't have another update til the next year so happy New Year everyone! <3 <3 <3


	31. Phase Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like I lied, one more chapter before this year is over!

Things have been slowly getting better with Quentin since he broke down in Peter's living room. He only stayed away for a few days to mourn on his own before he was calling up Peter to meet up nearly everyday in secret. While Quentin was still shying away from being intimate with Peter beyond a few stolen kisses it has been worlds better than when they weren't even speaking. Peter understands why his boyfriend wouldn't want to make out since he's not in a good place mentally and he can respect that.

It's just that something still feels off even after they've talked it out, Peter just can't shake the feeling -- the Peter Tingle, as May is fond of calling it no matter how many times he tries to get her to stop. It's not that Quentin isn't being kind and sweet when they spend time together, because he is, it just feels off. 

Like he's forcing himself, like it isn't coming to him naturally. Maybe it's because he's grieving, that's probably it Peter tells himself but the feeling never goes completely away. At times his lover says things that don't quite seem right, but Peter can't put his finger on exactly what is off. It's almost like he's reading from a script at times, or forcing himself to talk more like the people of this world rather than how he normally talks.

Whatever the reason it's just plain weird. Peter has always loved his sometimes archaic and strange way of speaking, there is no reason Quentin should be going out of his way to change now. It just doesn't make any sense. 

Peter keeps his worries to himself, not wanting to overload Ned with his problems, real or imagined. He knows his friend will just tell him to ask straight out or to be more patient, people grieve in different ways after all. Who is Peter to judge him if he wants to act more like the people of his new home? Maybe it's therapeutic like letting go of the past or something.

The weeks go by and a strange air of tension develops between them. An anticipation for something to happen, though Peter doesn't know what his lover wants to happen. He almost asks a few times, it feels too much like he is hiding something again, but he doesn't. He waits, he promised to be patient after all. 

Three days later when he gets a call from Quentin to meet up he's glad he didn't ask. It would have spoiled the surprise if he had.

Quentin Beck, his lover, soulmate, and the love of his life got down on one knee and asked for his hand just like in one of May's romance novels that Peter definitely hasn't read when bored. The ring is perfect, his boyfr-- no fiance now, is perfect, and he's so happy. 

They talked about how soulmates are for life, but it's an entirely different thing to have Quentin ask to marry him. It makes it more real, more tangible for Peter who wasn't raised on soulmate bonds like Quentin was. He might have cried tears of joy and kissed his lover for all that he was worth earning a happy surprised 'oof’ from his lover when he knocked him down on the ground.

"So I take it that means yes?" Quentin asks him with a quirk of his lips once Peter (eventually) lets him up for air. That only makes Peter steal his lips again whispering a soft yes when they break apart a second time. 

The perfect moment is ruined when an alarm sounds and a tiny portal opens up above them. Peter lets out a long sigh, the worst part about the hero business has got to be the perfectly timed emergencies. It never seems to fail that just when things are going great that some asshole evil do-er decides to throw a monkey wrench in to mess everything up. It's been like this for Peter almost since the moment he was bit by that spider it feels like at times.

Important test? Bank robbery. Finally getting invited to a party? Alien weapon fire goes off. It's always something, and usually he's okay with it. Well alright, he's never been okay with it but he's sort of gotten used to it he guesses? This time he is sooo sooo not okay with it. 

"Come on really?" He asks the air leaning back on his heels to let Quentin up from where he had him pressed against the floor of his living room. 

"Ah, I've interrupted. My apologies, but this is most dire." Stephen Strange's sophisticated speech coming across from the other side of the portal. Peter gives him _a look_ but at least the Sorcerer has the decency to look away feeling bad for messing up their limited alone time. God if he only knew just what he interrupted, Peter resolves to tell him later after everything is taken care of. He'll be able to hold this one over the wizard's head for years to come.

"Little uh, busy here. It better be important." Quentin sounds rightfully annoyed as he sits up to look through the portal. Stephen moves off to the side so the two of them can get a look behind him and Peter is surprised to see. . .

"Is that a giant water monster?" He asks incredulously. He's seen a lot of things since he started heroing but that's new.

"An elemental actually, but yes a 'water monster' would not be an inaccurate description. We have not had one on this plane in ages and as such we could really use the unique magic you wield against it Mr. Beck." Stephen turns back, blocking the view once more as he faces Peter. "I know that you two have limited time to be. . .intimate with one another and as such I regret intruding but I would not ask if we were not in dire need of assistance."

"I understand, just sucks. Really crap timing, but I know, I know." Peter says waving his hand in a shooing motion to the portal as he turns back to his lover. "Go on, go save the world, but you're making this up to me later."

Quentin gives him an apologetic smile before taking Peter's hand and placing a kiss on the back of it and then again on the ring on his finger. He looks up at Peter with his lips still pressed against the ring and it sends shivers down Peter's spine. The look in his eyes promises that he will more than make up for it and it fills Peter's stomach with nervous butterflies.

It has been so long since Quentin has looked at him with heat in his eyes, he had almost forgotten how powerful it could be. Not since they got caught by that damn paparazzi and God has Peter missed it. 

"Go on, the sooner you leave, the sooner you can come back." Quentin releases his hand and offers him a salute.

"Sir, yes sir!" He says earning a soft chuckle from Peter who returns the silly gesture and then Quentin is standing up and turns back to the now person sized portal and steps through.

*******************

As the portal closes behind Beck he turns back to face The Baron as the illusion is dropped. The man has been his ally since a few months after the mysterious man from another universe first appeared. In fact, if it were not for his involvement Beck's old plan would have taken years to set up properly, but as the former second in command to the Sorcerer Supreme his knowledge of magics, both forbidden and forgotten, has been vital in forging new plans.

Both men are naturally cunning and when they started working together they were able to forge a new plan that was light years ahead of Beck's original in terms of both scope and time needed. While his first plan of hitting his doppelganger with a tranquilizer and simply keeping him sedated until he had taken care of the world's heroes with his cloaked drones would have worked, it would have been messy. Very messy.

There would have been an uncomfortable margin for error, undoubtedly some of the heroes would have slipped through his fingers to be a pain in his ass later. Heroes are like cockroaches you see, hard to kill and even harder to keep dead -- but he could have made it work given enough planning.

But then The Baron himself showed up at his door unannounced with an offer to work together. With his magic they could keep his doppelganger indefinitely, something the sorcerer wanted very much, and in keeping the man alive he promised they would be able to use his very magic against the heroes and sorcerers of this world.

Beck was rightfully skeptical at first, at least until The Baron gave a small scale demonstration of what could be done with magic. Did you know that every living thing has it's own special frequency so to speak and that if you have that frequency they can be tracked across the universe itself? Beck sure as hell didn't know that, but by the end of the demonstration he was a believer. 

The problem, The Baron told him, was that the spell required immense power to kill just one target, and for their needs they would have to simultaneously kill hundreds of heroes and sorcerers in one fell swoop. That kind of power would take a literal army of sorcerers working together, or they could leech the power of just one very powerful magic user long enough to make a sort of magic bomb. Draining a normal mage born of this world would never work as so few of those who practice magic are born with their own magic in these times. The vast majority of magic users have to take energy from other dimensions to work their spells.

Only The Scarlet Witch and Mysterio possess their own power, and while it would have been ideal to have them both it wasn't feasible. Too complicated and the Witch too much of an unknown even amongst her fellow Avengers so they decided to leave her out of their plans. . .at least until the final phase where she would be a target like the rest of them. 

Beck spent the last month masquerading as Mysterio making amends and touching base with the heroes of this world and while he did so he secretly took samples from everyone he came across. A strand of hair, dead skin, anything at all that had been in contact with the person long enough to gain their special 'frequency' would work for the spell. He, and the disguised mages that had slowly been infiltrating the Sorcerer Supreme's order were able to collect something from nearly every hero and Sorcerer around. 

Only a few like Sergeant Barnes, Hawkeye, and some of the harder to track down lower level heroes were missed. That's where Beck's weaponized drones would come in to clean up the leftovers. Some will no doubt slip through both nets but their numbers will be diminished and with the cover story an attack from Thanos Level Monsters they would be none the wiser. It will be just another tragedy, they get more easily accepted with each passing one so who would question it at this point? 

"Everything in order?" The Baron asks though he already knows the answer.

"Paperwork is filed, we have the videos ready to 'leak', and the program is ready to run." Beck answers. He opens the controls he has strapped on his wrist and pulls up the feed on the ring he gave to Peter. The fish bowl camera shows Peter toying with the ring on his finger with a happy expression on his face.

Beck honestly does feel really bad for the kid. What shit luck he has in love, everyone he's ever dated has been linked to a super villain in some way or another. He doesn't deserve what Beck is going to do to him, but that's life for you, always there to kick a man when he's down. That's something Beck learned the hard way, if you want something you have to do whatever it takes to get it. Life won't let you have anything but suffering and disappointment for free.

Does he feel a little guilty about Peter, a kid who has had a rough life only to be shit on at every turn? Yeah he does. Hell, the kid reminds him of himself sometimes. Beck would bet money that if the kid hadn't been bitten by that spider he would have ended up on Stark's radar eventually just like Beck did. Stark always has eyes out for up and coming talent to take under his wing.

He'll razzle and dazzle you, show you the world and tell you it'll be yours for the taking. He'll throw his sickeningly large fortune around so your dreams can come true and just when you think you've made it-- finally made it that's when it happens. That's when he pulls the wool back from your eyes and spits on your dreams, your life's work and for what a punchline? He even had the audacity to take credit when he was never involved further than being the money man behind you.

So yeah, Peter could have easily turned out just like Beck in another lifetime. But he didn't. He's a brilliant kid but that's not why Stark thinks he's special. Despite being a baseline human himself, Stark has such a hard on for people with powers and special abilities it's not even funny. He, the egomaniac to end all egomaniacs, renamed his tower for them. Invited them in as family, hell he actually made one of them family legally.

He does all this for those people while he couldn't give a shit about people like Beck. Intelligence, ability, hard work? None of that means shit if you don't have a cape, a suit, or a magic hammer. After the alien invasion Stark bought and threatened his way into having the claim rights to the alien tech strewn across New York sending good, hard working people like Toomes into a life of crime just to get by. . .

So that is why he's chosen to grab life by the neck and wring his future out of it. Once he was the laughing stock, once his life work was taken away from him and every good job(and most the bad ones) wouldn't even give him an interview after Stark had him blacklisted. Well those times are long over, and if he's got to kill an innocent kid to get what he wants? Well then maybe Stark shouldn't have shit all over his dreams if he didn't want to face the consequences. 

"Good." The Baron nods to himself, satisfied. If Beck were being honest he doesn't like working with the guy, while he understands his motivations, not too different from his own what with being betrayed by his master and pushed to the side for another, even Beck finds his methods less than tasteful. The man has no regard for decorum or sanctity of anything. 

While Beck will do a lot of things to get what he wants he does have lines he wouldn't cross, but the Baron has no such qualms. If he were the one with the doppelganger. . .Beck shudders to think of the horrors the kid would have faced. It's one thing to have a few kisses here and there, but to go farther than that? It's just not right, and that's saying something coming from Beck and he has no doubts in his mind if The Baron were in his position the boy would have been put to use and later experimented on to test the limits of the soul bond.

So really? Beck is doing him a huge favor just putting the kid out of his misery. And if the man from another universe is smart he'll have taken Beck seriously and taken the offered razor blade Beck is having his people slip him with his next meal and put it to use. Beck knows he can be cruel, and he does get a certain amount of enjoyment out of watching the pathetic man face the harsh realities of his own failings, but he's never taken it too far. Not really.

Not how the Baron will if he's still breathing after they've set off the magic bomb and valiantly fight off the Elementals that have killed most of the world's heroes. 

Beck will of course be there to save the day with a little help from the Baron and his people. They have it all worked out, Beck will have been immune to the Elementals' magics thanks to being from another universe and the Baron's people will have been in another dimension during the spell so that they weren't affected.

They'll return home to see their order destroyed, but will rally to Beck's call and together they will defeat the Elementals and save the day. Afterwards The Baron will take his people off to "rebuild" and leave Beck in charge as the sole protector(and ruler!) of Earth. Beck is good, really good at reading people and when The Baron says the affairs of mortals(anyone without magic or powers) do not concern him and that Beck can do as he pleases -- he believes him. 

The sorcerer had been betrayed and wronged by his own kind, his very own master and devoted his life to destroying all that she built. Beck can really get behind that, and so as long as Beck assists or at least does not interfere with his cleansing of all magic not under his control The Baron has no issue with Beck taking the throne of power of the normal masses. 

Their goals are such a perfect fit that Beck suspects foul play at some point because anything too good to be true? Is. But he has plans within plans to deal with that eventuality. Should it come to pass? He'll be ready, he hasn't drawn all that extra power off of his doppelganger for nothing after all. Contingencies within contingencies, it's how he's got as far as he has. 

"Are your people in position?" Beck asks shaking himself from such thoughts, while planning ahead is good he needs his focus to be on the here and now. Especially when they are so close to the final step in phase two of their plans. The Baron inclines his head in answer.

"Your drones and personal cloaking devices are once again proving invaluable in disguising my people in such a way as to get past the magical warding of the Sanctums. All of my sorcerers are in position, they await our arrival and the power that only you can bring in passed the barriers." 

Beck in the lynch pin in their plans, they literally cannot do it without him. He is the only one capable of bringing in the stored magic without alarms and suspicion. Beck reaches down into the oh so useful vestments that as fortune would have it obey him like they would their creator. Anyone else would not be able to use the suit like he can, it is similar to Stark's nano tech in that it is coded to a specific person, but as it happens there are two Quentin Becks.

A very welcome surprise for Beck who at first hated wearing it and took it off every chance he got, but it's grown on him. It is a literal suit of magical armor and when he wears it, a small part of him can understand why heroes get so full of themselves. How they distance themselves from normal people, and think that they are better. 

Though Beck does not have magic, there is magic in the suit itself. It was designed to amplify it's user's magic and sustain him if he should use all of his reserves. What the Baron doesn't know, what Beck has kept from him is that he and his team have done experiments on their own in secret and discovered something very interesting, something that should prove very useful should the Baron ever try to double cross Beck and take power for himself.

It can be powered with the magic drained off of it's creator, and while it's abilities are limited it could prove quite handy against the merciless Baron should he turn. 

Beck pulls out a faintly glowing crystal and spends a moment watching the swirling green light contained within. It's amazing that such a small thing is able to contain such power, to think that he holds the power to annihilate all the so called heroes of this world in the palm of his hand. . .it's a heady feeling. He blinks and the spell it cast over him is broken, he turns to see the Baron watching him with a knowing, dangerous look. 

No wonder the guy has devoted his life to taking this sort of power away from others. It's simply too dangerous to have so many people running around with the ability to cause wanton destruction on a whim. As much as Beck thinks the Baron is a cruel and heartless man, he is a level headed one. Always so calm and collected, always making sure his followers are restrained with their use of their powers unless necessary.

It'll be a better place once they are done he thinks. He gives the Baron a nod and slips it back under his suit, they are more than ready to begin the final steps of phase two.

After Peter has been taken care of that is. Beck makes the arrangements for Peter to be whisked away so he can 'make it up to him'. The excited teen won't even see it coming. The mastermind behind the new world order has spent countless hours pouring over everything he knows about the teen, his every weakness, his darkest fears, and his past traumas.

The program he spent hours, days writing is flawless. All he needs to do is make a call, the last call Peter will ever get to set things in motion and Beck will be one step closer to getting everything he's ever dreamed of.

A smile curves his lips and he doesn't hesitate, nor does he second guess himself as he makes that call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haven't written enough Evil!Beck so he took over this one. Sometimes I wanted to write more but I didn't want to drag this out any more than it already has been *cough*wtf100k+*cough*
> 
> No more chapters will be posted until I've written the rest of the story out entirely as I want it done as best as I can do for the finale.  
3-4 chapters left, but they'll be long ones. :D


	32. History Repeats Itself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: Self harm...but it's for a good cause I swear.
> 
> This chapter and the next will be swapping through multiple POV, they have been labeled to avoid confusion. If it is still wonky please let me know and I'll try and do better.
> 
> Sorry it's taken so long to get out, got sick and my brain stopped working. Finally feeling better so away we go~

********** PETER **********

Peter's knee is bouncing a mile a minute as he sits in the limo(A limo!) Quentin had sent for him. He had called and said that he had something special planned for Peter, that he should dress in his best and that he would take care of everything. Peter picked out some nice slacks and his most comfortable dress shirt that May is always saying really matches his eyes. The limo takes him on a winding path through the city but eventually it pulls into a fancy, and boy does he mean fancy, hotel.

Butterflies flutter in his stomach as one of the hotel staff opens the door for him and tells him to follow him to where his fiance is waiting for him. 

Fiance!

He's really engaged! It's hard for Peter to wrap his brain around it. When he woke up this morning he had no idea today would be the day his lover would ask. He knew that Quentin would eventually, they are soul mates after all, but it feels both too soon and not soon enough to the teen. 

Don't get Peter wrong, he's in love with Quentin and this step they are taking together? It was destined and all, but in the small dark corner of his heart it feels almost. . .rushed. Like they've been having problems and been out of sync with each other so much lately and to go from that to a marriage proposal seems weird.

But then again what does Peter know anyway? This is the only relationship he's had that lasted past a first date. Maybe going through tough times together is what helps strengthen the bond between people, maybe it's what made his lover realize he needs to give Peter something solid and tangible like the ring on his finger.

Peter has spent most of the time since Quentin was dragged off to fight water monsters staring at the ring. He had never really pictured a wedding ring on his finger, and even if he had it wouldn't have been anything like this. Usually wedding bands are on the plain side for men, but he should have expected Quentin to have more style and flair than that given the amulet around his neck. 

He runs his finger across the two different metals that are entwined around each other that make up the band, one red and one blue-- his colors-- and the probably magically back lit green stone set in the center for his lover. It's sweet how his lover has taken so much care in the things he's made for Peter, each piece has represented them both and their bond-- even when neither of them realized they had one back when he had gifted Peter the amulet on his birthday.

What a romantic, and he's all Peter's. Peter looks back up to see that they've arrived at a room. The butterflies in his stomach go haywire as the hotel staff opens the door for him and he steps inside.

********** QUENTIN **********

There is a sound across the room from the door that has adrenaline pumping through his system. He stands up from where he was sitting next to the table as a tray is slid into the room and the flap closes. He takes a deep breath as he walks over to the door as if in slow motion. Each step echoes in his head as his vision tunnels to the tray noticing that along with what is meant to be his last meal is a folded sheet of paper. 

His hands have a slight tremor as he reaches for the tray ignoring the food to take the note that can only be from his captor. It's heavy in his hands, not just with the dread of what is to come, but the promised item hidden within it's folds. He walks back to where he was sitting and all but falls on his ass with the paper held loosely in his hands. 

One breath, then two before he can unfold the paper. He doesn't bother to read the note, he cares nothing for any last parting quips the monster with his face wanted to leave him with. Instead he unfolds the paper and a small metal rectangle slides out from between the folds of the paper to fall into the palm of his hand. The paper falls out of his hand next to his crossed legs already forgotten as he stares at the object.

His ticket to freedom, the only escape left to him. His whole world focuses down onto the deceptively small object, strange to think that something so small, so simple would be the only thing that stands a chance of saving all that those that he loves and cherishes on this world from the terrible plans his alter ego has. With his other hand he picks up the thin metal between his fingers and brings it closer to his face. He brushes a finger along the edge and doesn't even feel the cut until a drop of blood rises up from his skin.

Making a fist with his left arm he flexes to make his veins stand out below the cuff of his bracer. Blue veins stand out against his pale skin that almost never sees the light of day, an easy target. Bringing his other hand close but not quite touching the metal rectangle to his flesh.

He hesitates. Why does he hesitate? This must be done, there is no other way. No one is coming to save him, and every moment wasted is a moment Peter may not have.

So why can't he force his hand to move? His grip on the metal gets weaker the closer he gets, as if the strength and legendary will of the Champions is failing him. Is it because of who he is? Is it ingrained to not cause harm to one's self when you are the Avatar of the Mother of all Life?

Or is he just weak and afraid?

A growl of frustration escapes his lips. He's been hurt countless times in his life, by his own doing more often than not when he drew too much power too fast for his body to handle. So why is this any different? It's just a cut, it's not like the sight of his own blood will be a foreign one. 

Is it the fear of dying? He wished for death in the quiet nights wandering Gaea's wasteland more times than he likes to think about and he was serious about it. If his plan fails and he dies here? So what? A lot of people will die, his life will be just one of many stolen away so why does it matter if it is by his own hand or another's?

Quentin berates himself as he struggles to do what he knows has to be done for long silent moments no closer to succeeding until he feels a sharp stab of pain in his heart. He sucks in a sharp breath as he feels the magic of their connection working again for the first time in who knows how long. He doesn't know why it would work now of all times until the second shock of pain hits him.

Peter.

It's happening. Right now. It's already begun and the feelings of betrayal that leak out across their bond hit him like an arrow to the heart. Strength returns to his hands and his mind goes blank but for one thought:

Save Peter.

He grips the metal in his hand with a firm, unwavering grip and wastes no time doing what he must as he makes the first cut far deeper than it needs to be in his hurry.

********** PETER **********

The stab of something sharp in Peter's neck is a shock to his system. His full body twitches to the side away from it even as he feels something burn in his veins. He stares at the face of his lover in hurt confusion as he holds an empty syringe in his outstretched hand where before Peter knows he held nothing the moment before.

"What?" Peter gasps out his hand on his neck as he stares at his lover and watches in horror as he makes an expression he's never seen before. His grin goes wide, wide, wider until he has a malicious grin covering his face before letting out a long laugh.

"Oh Peter, you should see your face!" The man openly laughs at him enjoying the hurt on the teen's face. He lets the now empty syringe fall to the floor without a care as he takes a step towards Peter. 

His eyes-- His eyes are predatory as he advances on Peter as if he were prey. Peter takes an involuntary step back and then another as whatever the hell is in front of him approaches.

"What are you?!" Peter demands even as he feels a weakness in his limbs no doubt from whatever toxin he was injected with takes hold. He has a high metabolism and insanely fast healing but whatever it is? It's strong. Strong enough to take down an enhanced human? Probably judging by the way his vision has already begun to blur.

The malicious grin disappears off the man/creature/monster's face as if it were never there and once again it is Quentin standing before him. His expression is one of tender care for Peter that changes again to a familiar look of hurt.

"I'm hurt you don't know me Peter. I'm Quentin, Quentin Beck. How can you not know the face of your own lover." Peter closes his eyes and shakes his head trying to clear it. He sounds like him, looks like him, but in his heart he knows he can't be. Couldn't possibly be.

In his heart he's known a long time something was wrong but he ignored it. Made excuses. He reaches out with amulet begging this to not be true, it can't be. There is no change on the man's face in front of him as he uses it so he can't possibly be Quentin. He grips the amulet tighter in his hand as he tries to feel for Quentin but gets nothing. 

His heart goes cold. As far as he knows it can't be turned off, it should always work. . .unless. . .

Unless. . .

His spidey sense gives a weak throb but he's too busy freaking out over the possibility that Quentin. . .he can't even think it. He manages to twist his body slightly as his instincts scream danger at him through his clouded thoughts before he hears the sound of a gunshot and feels a thud against his chest. He looks down dumbly at the expanding red in his shirt.

There is a brief moment where his only thought is that his nicest shirt is ruined now. He falls back against the wall and looks up at the man in front of him. His eyes are cold, but there is a downward twist to his lips.

"Well can't say I didn't try to give you a clean death." He shrugs and the gun just disappears from his hands as if it were never there. He gives Peter a calculating look and his shoulders slump just slightly. "I really am sorry about this Peter, you're a good kid and you didn't deserve to die. Just fell into a bad crowd.

"You can thank Stark for this, for all of this actually. If it weren't for him none of this would be possible, if it weren't for him you could have had a good life." The man's words are remorseful even as his eyes show no emotion. He has the eyes of a killer, like Toomes. A shudder goes through Peter as he realizes how much trouble he is in now.

"Heard that before. 'Oh pity me Stark ruined everything' well Stark didn't make you a killer, whoever you are." Peter says with a surprisingly strong voice for how scared he is. It's a defense mechanism, he could have one foot in the grave(which he doesn't want to think about cause he really might this time) but his mouth would still be running. It's worked in his favor before distracting someone long enough to come up with a plan or for help to come.

The man lets out a bark of surprised laughter.

"You got spirit kid, I'll give you that. Won't do you any good though, ever since Mysterio appeared in this world your death was a foregone conclusion. You can thank Stark and your star-crossed love affair with Mysterio for that. Too good of an opportunity to pass up."

"What are you talking about? Who the hell are you and what do you want?"

"What do I want?" The man yells out, throwing his arms wide. "I want everything. The world, Stark Industries, which will be renamed to something far less showboating, and the adoring love of the world for being the one true hero they could count on. Someone like them who won't let them down, or forget what it's like to just be human unlike the Avengers."

"You're crazy." Peter says weakly as he clutches at his chest trying to apply pressure and slow the bleeding. God what he wouldn't do to have his suit right now with it's first aid protocols. But he doesn't have it. This feels too similar to what happened with Toomes, trapped alone with nothing but his own wits and powers against a murderer. 

He doesn't even have Ned this time.

"That's what Stark said, called me unbalanced. Dangerous. You know what? Maybe he was right, but that's a little like the kettle calling the pot blank isn't it?" He says with a laugh that doesn't reach his eyes. "The entire Avengers team is made up of so-called heroes that are so broken up and twisted inside they can't even be around real regular people anymore. They don't even remember, or maybe they never knew in the first place what it means to be human. So caught up in themselves and their power grab fighting against the very nations who birthed them.

"And I'm the crazy one for wanting to go back to how we were before? The Avengers have proved time and time again that they will choose themselves over their government, over regular citizens-- the very citizens they swore to protect?! And I'm the mad one?!" Fury radiates off the other man as he rants, the fire of rage burns in his eyes the first real emotion Peter has seen in them.

It's terrifying.

"Where is Quentin? What did you do to him?" Peter demands feeling a burst of strength rise up within him as he worries about his lover.

"Oh Peter, I already told you I AM Quentin."

"Liar!"

"I'm just not YOUR Quentin." Peter stares at him dumbly for 2.5 seconds before his eyebrows raise up and dread fills him. "Funny thing about the multiverse is that we can both be him. Isn't it marvelous? You can imagine my surprise when I saw that the new hero on the block had my devilishly handsome face. What are the odds? Probably the same that he'd be fated to fall in love with my greatest enemy's son and give me the perfect opportunity for revenge."

Shitshitshit--

"Is he. . ." Peter can't ask it, can't think it. But the other man knows what he means. He looks down at a screen strapped to his wrist that wasn't there a moment before. Peter blinks rapidly, either the man has some strange powers or whatever he was injected with is messing with his vision. First the syringe, then the gun, and now the computer on his wrist. 

Just what is going on???

"He's not dead." Before Peter can let out a sigh of relief the man holds up a finger. "At least not yet." The air shimmers and as the man somehow projects what is on his screen into the thin air. Peter's heart seizes in his chest at what he sees.

It's Quentin, his Quentin--but he's hurt. Half naked and chained? He is hitched over himself with his arms held close to his body as if he is in pain. Peter notices that his hair is unkempt and long. His brain races to connect the dots and pieces together all that he knows from when Quentin first started acting funny. When his spidey sense first started to warn him and he stupidly ignored it

He's been a prisoner for months. They must have traded places not long after the whole picture disaster. 

Shitshitshitshit--

"What did you do to him?" Peter demands, fearful of the answer that would be the reason he is seeing his lover curled in on himself on the floor. He doesn't need the amulet to know how horrible he must be feeling, his posture radiates anguish and suffering. It's enough to make him momentarily forget the gunshot wound in his own chest he is so worried for his lover.

"Me? I didn't do anything. I merely gave him a choice, he's the one who made it so don't put this one on me. In fact, much like the tranquilizer I injected you with--what I gave him was a kindness." Peter stares at him with anger coloring his vision. "No really, the fate that awaited him was far worse than the out I offered him. And can you honestly say you'd rather be feeling the full pain of being shot? No, I didn't think so."

"What. Did. You. Do." Peter bites out between clenched teeth as his heart beats a thousand times what it should in his chest. His spidey sense knows. His heart knows. His eyes can see, but he can't believe it.

The camera angle changes to show a discarded small rectangle that Peter's mind refuses to identify. It zooms in on the red liquid coating it and the drops along the tile of which Quentin sits. Everything goes grey except the bright, too bright red around his lover. Once he sees it, he can't look away. It's all he sees.

There is so much of it, too much of it. His heart goes cold in his chest. 

"He-he wouldn't--he would never--" His mouth says without his consent even as his heart knows it to be a lie.

"Do you really think someone as broken and lonely as him could really go on without his soulmate for a second time? I've been watching him for months, we both know he would break. For such a big, powerful man he is surprisingly weak when it comes to matters of the heart. Pathetic." The man's tone is full of disgust but Peter can't look away from the screen as he watches--

As he watches. . .

"No!" Peter yells out and vaults forward, gunshot wound be damned. He launches himself at the evil man intending to get him by the neck and put him in a hold to force the other man to tell him where his lover is so he can save him. 

But his arms cut through the man's neck as if he isn't even there. The image of the evil man glitches like a computer screen with a failing graphics card before cutting out entirely. Peter's spidey sense saves him from crashing into the wall behind him letting him flip to land on his feet.

"What the--!" He says in confusion as he stares not at a man but. . .is that a drone? A drone with guns?! His eyebrows are in his hairline and he barely dodges out of the way as the drone fires another shot that grazes his arm.

Another Quentin materializes in place of the drone and he's laughing.

"Oh Peter, you didn't think I'd actually be here did you?" He mocks, "I'm insulted that you would think I would be stupid enough to be in the same room as someone as enhanced as you are even wounded and tranq'd. It's Heroes 101: At their lowest they always seem to surprise you with last second feats of strength and bravery.

"Sorry Peter, there is no escaping this. No last minute heroics so that you can save the day. You will die here, just as your lover will die on the screen. It has to be this way, the new world can't be reborn if the relics of the past are still around. Just think of it as one last great sacrifice for the greater good of all. I know how much you hero types like that self sacrificing bullshit.

"And it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for you." He says with a laugh as his image cuts out again as Peter throws a table through it. 

He needs to escape now, his plan of forcing answers out of the other man won't work if he's not even here-- and he's no good to Quentin or anyone else if he's dead. He reaches for his phone in his pants and types the Avengers SOS code but nothing happens. The screen remains black. That shouldn't happen. Not with Tony's tech.

"Oh did I forget to mention that your little get out of jail free card won't work?" Four Evil!Quentins say as they appear around him. "Did I forget to mention that the lovely ring is more than just bling. Nothing goes in or out without my say. I am in control, have been in control for longer than you can know." Peter rips the ring off his finger and tosses it away, but the victorious smile on the other man's face doesn't falter.

"There are perks to being an Avenger, access to codes, frequencies, the works. My unfortunate doppelganger's entrance to this universe really was a god send. Before you go off defending Stark's work being fool proof, not even his, honestly very advanced AI, was equipped to deal with a situation where there are more than one of the Avengers. In fact, Friday has been instrumental in helping me further along my plans.

"Under the guise of watching out for your safety, or secret romantic getaways safe from prying eyes and overbearing father figures she helped me set this all up. She has a real soft spot for you as Stark's ward, was all too happy to give me the frequencies so we wouldn't be interrupted during our _ special alone time_."

"You're a monster!" 

"So I've been told, and yet I am not a needlessly cruel man. The trap was sprung the moment you walked into this building, and yet I took the time and effort to tranq you. Do you have any idea how much the next part would hurt if I hadn't done that? You should be thanking me. Ungrateful."

Peter's heart rate skyrockets as he worries about the next part, but the other man wastes no time.

"Goodbye Peter. And for what it's worth, I am sorry it had to end this way. You were a good kid." 

In the next moment several loud explosions echo around Peter and the floor heaves dangerously. The images of Evil!Quentin disappear and the drones that must have been creating them open fire.

But not on Peter, instead they fire at support beams Peter had not even seen before. The room glitches between the fancy hotel and an old building with grime on every surface. Peter realizes too late that everything he's seen has been a lie. The illusion fades completely as the concrete above him gives out.

He raises his arms above his head as it comes down to protect himself, so much like when Toomes had brought the warehouse down on top of him but worse. The whole lay out of the building is new to him, he doesn't even have a moment to try to find a safer spot before the whole place is collapsing down upon him. His world goes black as the debris blocks out all light and hope.

********** QUENTIN **********

Quentin finishes the last of the runes drawn with his own blood along his bracers. He holds his breath for a moment and prays to Gaea that this will work. That it will be enough. That it will be in time.

He focuses his mind and wills the runes to work, though he is cut off from magic it lives in his very blood. A faint green glow comes from the blood scrawled runes but it ebbs and fades, maybe it is not enough. Quentin attempts to pick up the discarded metal blade intent on releasing more of his life blood to fuel the spell but his blood slick fingers cannot grasp it. A growl builds up in the back of his throat, he's too close to fail now.

But as the growl escapes his lips the glow brightens on the bracers, fueled by his emotions, powered by his will, his intense need to save Peter.

A soft clink breaks the deathly silence of the room as the bracers fall free from his arms. He stares at them dumbly for the briefest of moments, allowing himself to enjoy the victory before he moves his hands to cover the long deep cuts on the inside of both his forearms. He focuses his power into heat and feels the flesh beneath his hands burn and melt sealing the wounds.

A good first test of his power. He pulls his hands away to look at the burn marks on his forearms. It'll scar ugly, if it ever gets a chance to scar, which the man strongly doubts. His survival past saving Peter and preventing his doppelganger from murdering the great heroes of this world isn't something he even bothers to think about. It'll take everything he has, everything he was ever meant to be to succeed, there will be nothing left for after. 

But as long as there is an _after_ for Peter it doesn't matter.

There is another spike of pain, much stronger now that the nefarious magic of the chains is no longer inhibiting the power of the amulet he crafted for Peter. Not much time left, if any. In his mind's eye he can see where Peter is, where he must go but before he can do anything a flood of horror and despair washes over him. He’s drowning in the feeling of desperation coming from Peter, and if he were not already on the ground it surely would have brought him to his knees from the sheer intensity of it. He can almost hear Peter's voice calling out for him, begging him to save him.

It lasts but a moment before it stops.

Before all feeling from Peter stops. 

His hand flies to his chest grasping at it and willing the feeling to come back. Even the pain and horror was better than nothing. But it does nothing.

Silence rings in his ears and in his heart more loudly than the deafening roar that had destroyed his world. For Peter has become his entire world.

A cry born of pure anguish escapes him to echo in the room before he loses what little control he has and a burst of raw energy explodes out from him. The room is in shambles in its wake, the hated table a charred mess 20 feet away. The glass that was his prison shattered and the room is dark with lack of power.

Quentin notices none of this, instead he raises his hands above his head and shoots straight up blasting the room and whatever else might be above his prison to dust with his power as he flies up and out of his cell. The daylight blinds him momentarily as he breaks through to the surface, he takes the barest of moments to get his bearings before he is flying faster than he ever has before in the direction he last felt Peter.

He doesn't allow himself to think, to worry, to imagine what horrors he will find when he gets there. His one and only thought is to get there faster, faster, faster! He is a green streak in the sky homing in on Peter, he flies above the buildings so he won't have to waste precious moments dodging them as he races to get to his lover in time.

In no time at all, or an entire eternity depending on perspective, he arrives to see the smoking ruin of a building. His heart sinks, he knows this must be the place. He reaches deep within himself trying to feel Peter, but not with the magic of the amulet. It was not created to be used in such a way unless the wearer chose to be found. Instead he uses the innate abilities of the Avatar, and prays, begs, and hopes that his connection with Peter is enough that some small part of Gaea's light can be felt from within his young lover.

THERE!

It's faint, fading. But there. His eyes fly open and he struggles to keep his hope down as he does the sort of hero work he was always born for. He was not made for fighting villains, his purpose has been and will always be rescuing those in need. He has years of experience digging out survivors after quakes, floods, and other natural(and sometimes unnatural) disasters. 

A quiet calm comes over him as he quickly, but carefully moves the rubble aside in such a way as to not further harm the person beneath it. He's good at this, damn good at it. He has learned after much practice exactly which pieces of destroyed building to move and which to leave. He works efficiently not allowing the fear to taint his judgement, nor allowing his heart to make him go any faster than what is safe. It's maddening to control himself, never before has he had such a personal stake in the survival of someone he's working to save.

It only takes him minutes, but it feels like days before he first sees signs of his lover. A grey, dirty hand peaks out of the rubble. It breaks something within Quentin to see reddish brown dust caked on that hand. 

Dried blood.

All pretenses of control leave him as his world narrows down to that hand. He rushes forward and consequences be damned he uses his power to grab a 10 foot section of the rubble and wills it into the air. He reaches out and touches the hand, it's not yet cold. There is still time.

As his skin makes contact with Peter's he is able to feel the life in Peter's body and it allows him to simply let go of the rest of the broken building he has suspended until only Peter remains. There is a worryingly large, dark stain that spans almost the entire front of Peter's shirt.

He pulls the unconscious teen to his chest and cradles him in his arms wasting no time in flying off again. He can panic about the wound later, after he gets him to professionals that are trained for such trauma. Quentin feels shallow breaths tickle his chest, the cooling, but still there warmth of life in his lover's skin, and the faint, too slow beat of Peter's heart as he flies to the nearest hospital he knows of. 

As long as Peter still draws breath there is hope. He will not fail him, he will not lose him. He made a promise, and there is nothing that can stop him from keeping it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Said I'd wait to post until the whole thing was done...yeah that turned out to be a lie. I'm half way through the next chapter, was fighting me until I got inspired so I feel comfortable posting this now.
> 
> It's all planned out and I imagine the next chapter should be done by end of the week since I scored 3 days off and plan to do nothing but work on this. 
> 
> Also holy shit almost done. I don't know what I'm going to do with my life after this beastly project is done haha. Thanks to everyone who has read and commented. Really, really helped me keep going when it was rough. <3 <3 <3


	33. When a Good Man Goes To War

********** TONY **********

Morgan is schooling him at Mario Kart. Schooling _him_. At a game. He is both proud as hell of his daughter and furious that he's losing at _anything_. Especially to a little girl that has inherited his penchant for shit talk. Thank God Pepper is busy in her office or he'd be sleeping on the couch for sure if she heard the things coming out of their daughter's mouth as she once again blue shells him to steal first place.

For the third time in a row. 

That's his girl alright. Before they can start up a fourth game where he swears up and down he will win this time damn it, his phone rings playing White and Nerdy. Peter hates that he set that song as his ringtone, but every time he opens his mouth to argue it he ends up closing it cause it's soooo him. He rambles just as bad as Tony does but with none of the smooth confidence born of not giving a shit that the older man has.

Tony means the ring tone as a compliment, he really does. He happens to have a special soft spot in his no longer arc powered heart for nerds. Science bros before hoes---well other heroes anyway. He hasn't been much for women outside of Pepper in, wow over a decade now. Jeez where does the time go?

"Hold on a second sweety, Pete's calling. Do one without me."

"You just don't want to lose again, I'm onto you daddy." She sasses him. God he loves her.

"Hey Peter Pickle Eater." He answers the video call before the other side connects but instead of his favorite teen dork on the other side of the line it's Beck. Shirtless. "What the fu--dge?" He exclaims with a quick glance at Morgan, see Pepper he's trying. He stands up from the couch and moves away to the kitchen, a rant building up as he moves. "If this is some kind of sick power play I swear--"

"Tony." He has the gall to interrupt what would have been a truly impressive dressing down, but the tone of his voice makes Tony stop. He sounds. . .bad. Real bad.

Bad enough that Tony snaps his mouth shut with a click as he looks, really looks at the other man for the first time. Yes, he is shirtless, but filthy. Grey and brown colors his skin, his hair is long-- too long. It is a wild mess around his head as if it hasn't been brushed in months. But it's his eyes that lets Tony know something is wrong, very, very wrong.

"It's Peter." His heart skips a beat in his chest. Quentin(he's earned back first name privileges in Tony's mind) runs a hand through his hair and that's when Tony notices the bracers he made(okay, helped make) are missing and there is dried blood all over his hand and arm.

"Explain. Now." Tony barks out as his mind races to take in all the information he's seeing to make sense of it. The other man's hair is too long, he saw him just last week and he was sporting the same haircut he has been rocking since Tony first loaned him grooming tools. His cheeks are slightly sunken in as if he hasn't been eating well for a long time, and God, his eyes.

He looks like he's been through hell and had to claw himself out. Tony's been there, he knows that look all too well. It's the look he had after he first blasted himself out of the Ten Rings camp. Just what the hell is going on damn it?! He would think the call to be fake but the call was from Peter's phone, no one is good enough to spoof Peter's unique phone. Everyone in his family and extended Avenger family have phones tailored to them for a reason just like this.

He gets the feeling he will wish this was an elaborate hoax instead of what it really is. 

"I've--" Quentin starts then stops as if he doesn't even know where to begin. His jaw flexes as he grinds his teeth together before trying again. "You need to disable all my access codes. Everything. There is another me. One from this universe."

"Mother fucker." Tony knew the name was familiar, big red flags flew in the back of his mind when the man had introduced himself so long ago but he could never place it. It all comes back to him in a rush, the unbalanced employee he had who worked on B.A.R.F. until Tony had to fire him of course. The man had destroyed his workstation and terrorized his secretary after the showcase he had done. All over the name Tony had picked on a whim.

"Son of a bitch. Friday enact Body Snatchers Protocol. Avenger codename Tall Dark and Mysterious has been compromised." Tony commands his AI before turning his attention back to his phone. "Peter." He can't get more out than his name, fearing the worst. He's already lost him once before, he invented time travel to save him for Christ's sake! He can't go through that again.

"He's hurt, badly. I don't-- I don't know what **he** did to him exactly. But he's-- he's still alive. I dug him out of the rubble and flew him here to Bellevue."

"Dug--" Tony's breath catches as he realizes that someone would dare put his kid through his worst nightmare again. He blinks rapidly as thoughts of murder, slow, horrible murder floods his mind. It was one thing to watch Peter slip away in his arms, but to know that he was buried alive AGAIN makes him so angry his hands start to shake.

"I don't know exactly what his plan is, I've been-- I've been his prisoner for a long time now. They were stealing my power for something, something really bad. It's going to happen soon, maybe it's already begun I don't know. All I know is there is some evil wizard working with that bastard and they plan to kill all the heroes at once." He pauses with his face twisted in an apologetic grimace. "And- and your family."

Quentin keeps talking but Tony can't hear him over the rushing of blood in his ears. No one goes after his family, he went through hell when Pepper got dosed with Extremis. To think someone would go do far as to go after Morgan? Rage boils in his veins for a moment before he pushes it down into a cold fury. This is serious, no one, **no one** is going to so much as look in their direction-- He'll make sure of it.

". . .We have to stop them Tony, or me digging Peter out of the rubble will mean nothing and he'll die anyway. Everyone will." Tony reconnects back to the outside world catching the end of what Quentin was telling him. He hopes he didn't miss anything important with his mini freak out. 

"I don-- I don't have much time." Tony's eyes flick down to the other man's bare wrists and back up to see blue eyes full of grim determination. "I think if they were going to use my power for, I don't know some massive bomb or something they would have to do it at one of the Sanctums using the vortex and ley lines to make it work on a global scale. I am going to fly to the New York Sanctum now, I understand that you need to stay and try to protect your family but if you can put out a call to everyone else maybe, if we are lucky, someone else is close by. In case-- In case I don't make it."

It takes Tony .0002 seconds to reach a decision. No brainer really.

"Fuck that." Quentin's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "I'm the king of flying off half cocked. Not you. And you know what? In the history of I don't know, forever when has that ever worked out for me? Never that's when. Here is what is going to happen, you are going to sit your ass down in one of those uncomfortable hospital chairs and wait-" Tony pauses to do quick math, "7 minutes for me to arrive and then we are going to go together.

"You've been an honorary member of the Avengers for a while, it's time to act like it. Capsickle has beat it into my head, literally once and boy that wasn't fun- zero stars, that going in alone when you have back up just a call away is worse than stupid. It's selfish and puts everyone else in danger. So no. We'll go together and show those fuckers why you don't mess with the Avengers one more time. Retirement really hasn't suited me anyway, getting a little chunky around the middle if you know what I mean."

Quentin's lip twitches up, not even a ghost of a smile, but it's something. He nods and ends the call. Tony takes a deep breath not looking forward to yet again disappointing Pepper. When he tells her to get in the rescue suit and to give Morgan her birthday gift early she looks like she is fighting tears.

You'd think she'd be used to this by now, but then again things have been going so well for so long maybe she's out of the habit of worrying about life and death situations with her husband. He gives her a kiss ("It's not a goodbye kiss Pep!") and promises to come home in one piece.

He picks up Morgan and whispers in her ear that Mommy is going to take her on a surprise adventure with the not-so-secret birthday gift. (It couldn't be secret since she's been designing her own suit practically since she could walk) It's still a prototype but even partially finished it is still Stark Tech and more defensible than a panzer tank. 

"Going to save the world again aren't you?" She asks him, seeing right through his poorly executed lies. It hits him straight in his heart. It's one thing to do this to Pepper, a grown ass terrifyingly amazing woman, it's another to scare his own daughter. To have to worry about Daddy not coming home. It's almost enough to make him consider staying, to not put her through that, but he knows. He can feel it, this is another one of those times that if he doesn't step up as Iron Man. . .It doesn't matter because he's never really had a choice anyway. He is Iron Man, he'll do what he has to so little girls like his daughter can grow up to have happy, long lives.

"Sure am kiddo." Pepper sniffles next to him but Morgan just gives him a huge grin.

"Kick their asses Daddy!" Tony lets out a laugh surprised by his daughter. He gives her a kiss on the cheek and sets her back down. The suit is flowing over his body as he looks between Pepper and Morgan. He's always had ideals to fight for, people to save. But fighting for his family? 

The villains aren't going to stand a chance.

********** BECK **********

Beck is already at the Sanctum with Mordo and his people in position when he gets the notification that the program he wrote for Peter has finished flawlessly. There was never any doubt that it wouldn't, he wrote it himself after all, but it clears them to take the next step. He shares a look with Mordo who is disguised as one of Strange's mages they had taken out of the picture weeks ago. Mordo nods and moves into position for his role in the coming events as he approaches Strange.

While Beck is confident in his drones and illusion tech to keep him safe from the majority of the mages in the Sanctum he has no such confidence in facing Strange. The man was known for being a highly skilled genius even before he became the Sorcerer Supreme or whatever he likes to call himself. He doesn't know if his tech would outwit the magician as well as it has his underlings, so it is good that Mordo plans to take him out of the equation at the very start.

Suddenly every head in the room turns and faces the same direction. It's uncanny and unnerving to say the least. Even Mordo and his own people do it. The next second there is a warning alarm going off on his arm and when he looks at it he realizes why all the magically sensitive people turned in surprise. 

The holding facility they were keeping Quentin in is. . .gone. 

He plays the last seconds of footage his drones sent before they ceased functioning. He sees Quentin kneeling on the ground next to the discarded razor blade amidst a pool of blood before the man's head shoots up and he lets out a scream born of suffering the likes of which Beck cannot even begin to fathom.

Huh, so that's what happens when you kill someone's soulmate. Interesting. More explosive than he thought it would be, but the end result is the same. While it is not ideal that every wizard in the room is now on high alert from the explosion of magical energy, it could prove useful as a distraction.

Strange snaps his head back around to look at Beck in confusion. He can see the wizard's mind racing behind his eyes as he puts all of his famous intellect to work on solving the mystery of how he felt Quentin's power miles away when he's standing right in front of him. Beck winks at him and holds his hands out to the side as a 'what who me?' gesture. 

It's gratifying to see the confusion turn into anger, but it's even more satisfying to see the anger turn into shock and worry as Mordo does his part. Still in disguise, Mordo reaches out and grasps Strange's forearm and the previously invisible manacle hanging off his arm locks around Strange's arm. As soon as the metal closes around the Sorcerer's arm the room lights up in bright light and the two of them disappear from sight.

Strange's underlings stare in shock at the now empty spot where their master was and Mordo's well trained people waste no time in taking advantage of the situation.

Spells fly and hit their marks knocking down many of Strange's men. Some of the more seasoned of the Sorcerer's people are able to deflect or counterspell in time, but the opening wave of attacks leaves the odds strongly in their favor. Quentin has his drones flanking him and making it appear as if he too disappeared to wherever Mordo had taken Strange.

Beck walks calmly through the chaos of magic as he makes his way to the vortex with the magical device that will change the world squared away safely in his suit. Today is going to be a good day. The first day of a new world order. 

Under his control.

********** TONY **********

Tony arrives at the hospital in under 7 minutes and he doesn't have to say a thing to the staff as he makes his way to where Peter is. This isn't the first time Iron Man has come in hot to a hospital, hell it isn't the first time he's come in hot to _this_ hospital. Doctors and nurses move out of the way and don't even try to say anything to him with his face plate up. Must be making a really awful expression, but who could blame him? He doesn't mean to frighten anyone but knowing his kid is here and hurt real bad? Well he can't find it in him to care enough to even attempt to be polite.

He finds the room with the help of Friday, who has been giving him updates on Peter's condition since he got off the phone with Quentin. So he already knows the prognosis is good. Despite being shot, having a warehouse dropped on him and being dosed with rhino(RHINO?!!!) tranquilizers he is recovering at a pace that would give Cap a run for his money.

Thank god for radioactive spiders.

Tony knows all this and yet when he steps into the room and sees Peter on the surgery table surrounded by doctors and nurses in a flurry of activity it makes his heart stop. He looks so small and weak on the table with tubes and monitors all about. Tony knows better than to move any closer than the observation window, knows he'll do more harm than good. Even still he wants nothing more to be in there with him. To hold his hand, to tell him it'll be okay, and to promise that nothing like this will ever be allowed to happen again.

A labored breath to his right drags Tony back to reality and he turns to see Quentin standing there, also looking down at Peter for a moment before turning back to Tony, his expression serious.

Right, they don't have time to worry. They got Avenging to do, and by God are they gonna Avenge the shit out of Peter.

"Let's go get the bastards who did this." Tony says and Quentin nods. Tony has the faceplate down again and pulls up readings on the man standing in front of him. He doesn't look good. Hell, he barely looks better than the teen in the surgery room not 20 feet away. 

Friday gives him a list of known injuries and problems. Blood loss, malnourishment, and last but not least, early signs of destabilization with this universe. He wasn't kidding when he said he doesn't have time.

"You good?" Tony asks before they fly off to save the world cause he's worried about combat readiness--not that he's worried about the man he's had a seriously complicated relationship with over the last year. Nope. That's dangerously close to feelings and they have no part in Avenging. Maybe when all is said and done and the world isn't in imminent danger he'll have to take a long, hard look at his feelings for the man he once called friend standing in front of him. Maybe.

Quentin lets out a dry, humorless laugh.

"I'm pretty far from good Tony, but I'll last long enough to see this through."

Okay. Tony gets that. Been there, done that, got the PTSD and broken arc powered heart to prove it. Tony can respect that, all the Avengers have a self sacrificing streak a mile wide-- even the honorary members. 

Tony nods accepting the answer for what it is. He asks Quentin to tell him all he knows as they walk to the roof top and he doesn't like the answers he gets. Not at all.

God he hates magic. 

"Sir, there is an unusual weather pattern centered on the New York Sanctum." Friday informs him and pulls up satellite feed. A huge storm is brewing dead center over the building and it makes the hair stand on the back of his neck.

"Looks like you were right Q, shit storm brewing right on top of Strange's club house." 

"We have to go now before it's too late." Tony gives Quentin an assessing look then steps in front of the other man with his arms out.

"I'm faster than you in the suit, and frankly you look like death warmed over so hop on and I'll get us there." Quentin nods and before he can be awkward about holding on Tony has him in his arms-- not bridal style though. He does have standards. His boots expand outward into plates for Quentin to stand on as he holds the other man around the shoulders with one arm with an unbreakable grip.

They shoot off into the sky side by side in silence. The city blurs beneath them as they break the sound barrier wasting no more time as they race to prevent yet another disaster. Tony is getting too old for this shit, but retirement just never seems to stick. He'd be lying if he said he doesn't still get a thrill from heroics, but it's tainted by all that is on the line.

Pepper, Morgan, Peter, and the family he chose in the Avengers. They are all counting on him and Quentin. He sent out the mayday, all hands on deck Avenger emergency call but they can't delay any longer. Who even knows if any of the other Avengers are near enough to help in time. 

Their two man team is going to have to be enough. It will be, there was never any other option.

Tony can see the storm clouds from miles out as they approach, lightning arcs within the clouds. A heavy unnatural fog obscures the ground for several blocks out. Fucking magic. 

Tony flies lower not wanting to risk a stray arc of lightning taking out the suit before he even gets there. He's worked closely with Thor to improve the suit's resistance to lightning but there is no telling if that lightning is laced with magic or not which he most certainly has not dealt with before. Better to risk the fog and low vision.

The closer they get the more ominous it gets. His instincts, honed from a decade of heroing scream at him that this is going to get real ugly, real quick so it is almost comforting when the other shoe drops. He has a split second warning alarm on his suit before they are knocked out of the sky from a blast from. . .is that a god damn rock monster?

Yup. That's an angry rock monster launching parts of its body at them. Tony dodges the next rock but not the one after. He twists to shield Quentin from the blow considering he's decided to save the world half naked. Which okay, he looks good enough to do it even on a bad day like today, but shit even Cap has the sense to wear the armored Kevlar suit Tony made for him. Tony makes a mental note to add a compartment on the next Iron Man suit for an adjustable size bodysuit made of the same stuff he made so New York doesn't have to see the Hulk's frighteningly impressive family jewels every time Banner got a little green at the gills. 

The repulsor on his gauntlet whines as he fires off a blast hitting the rock monster dead center sending chunks flying, but four more rise up from the ground to take its place. Great. 

Two blasts of green energy shoot off from beside him as Quentin joins the fight. Tony lets go so that he can shoot off repulsor blasts from each hand at the remaining two monsters taking them out in a show explosion of rocks. With every one they take down a dozen more pop up and their shots are becoming harder and harder to dodge or deflect as they plink off the armor. 

Quentin is far less lucky as grazing shots cut his skin. Without the protection of his own suit even small fragments of rock leave him bleeding when they make it past his defenses. He alternates between blasting off shots of his magic and creating a shield of green energy to protect himself as they fight back to back.

"Sir, I'm picking up unusual readings." Friday interrupts.

"No really?" Tony asks sarcastically, but Friday doesn't rise to the bait like Jarvis always did. Instead she switches his visual input to thermal which is completely at odds with what he was just seeing only a moment ago. 

The rock monsters don't show up at all on thermal, which in of itself might not be too odd because _magic_. It's what appears on thermal that gets Tony's mind racing. Are those. . .drones? His mind changes gears from thinking about magic to thinking in terms of tech, something he's very, very good at. 

B.A.R.F.

Guess the crazy bastard Beck was right about it having more applications outside of psychotherapy. Knowing that he isn't fighting some magical bullshit changes things. 

"Friday they must be running on a network to coordinate their illusions so well. Take it down." Tony orders as he fires off a rapid series of blasts taking out several of the drones. In the corner of his display he can see the illusion of the rock monsters glitch and cut out on a few of them.

"They're illusions." Quentin says in a tone that suggests that he isn't surprised. Tony wants to be mad about missing key information, but the pained expression on the other man's face makes him hold his tongue. He wasn't firing on all cylinders when he crawled out of the Mark One either. Captivity is a bitch.

"Shield us, I'll take them out since you can't see them." Tony orders and Quentin obeys without hesitation. Tony takes out the remaining drones in short order concentrating entirely on his shots and trusting in Quentin to block return fire. The illusion drops as the last drone falls to the ground to join its brothers as they lay on the ground smoking. Sparks arcing from the ruined machines the only sound as the storm cloud disappears as if they were never there. 

It was all a damn illusion, the fog, the storm, the lightning. Meant to distract and dissuade any who would interfere, and they fell for it. Hook, line and sinker. Damn it, they don't have time for this.

"I don't know shit, and don't want to know shit about magic so you're gonna have to show me where the totally lame, not cool sounding vortex is." Tony says unapologetically.

"It is at the heart of the Sanctum directly under where the light falls through the glass window during the apex of the sun three floors down at the depth where sea meets land." Tony blinks at that answer.

"Of course it is. Why wouldn't it be in a place that forces you to use bad poetry to describe its location." Tony shakes his head. "Wizards." 

Quentin's lips turn up slightly at Tony's annoyance, probably the closest he's gotten to smiling in a long, long time. Quentin leads the way into the building with Tony hot on his heels but he stops in the doorway despite the limited time they may or may not have. When Tony looks into the building he can see why.

The place is a wreck. The foyer is full of overturned furniture and priceless relics strewn about. There are two crumpled forms on the ground, most likely the entrance guards judging by the tightening of Quentin's jaw as he looks down at them. 

"They're here." He says and in the next instant he is running deeper into the building. Tony scans the area with his thermal imaging but there are no signs of drones. They descend a floor and immediately come under attack but from real life wizards this time. Quentin has a green shield out in front of them deflecting the magical tendril at the last second. Another attack comes from behind Tony hitting him in the back momentarily knocking out the suit power as another tendril of magical energy wraps around him.

A blast of green energy hits him dead on, but it seems to only affect the magic tendril which shrivels away letting Tony go. His suit boots back up the second it's no longer got a hold on him. Now he's pissed. Nobody messes with his suit, especially not with magic.

The repulsor whines as he fires off a shot behind him and hears a satisfying grunt of pain letting him know he's hit his mark. Quentin trades magical blows with the remaining wizard in front of them but it's easy to see how outclassed the other one is. Even at his lowest there is a huge gap of ability and raw power between the Champion of Gaea and some minion wannabe wizard. It's almost funny, like the poor guy is a 5th level noob who rushed the end boss and is now getting his ass handed to him by someone so much more powerful that the level won't even display.

When the wizard goes down, he stays down. Tony is pretty sure he'll live, but the wound to his pride will never heal. Tony gives Quentin an approving nod before they continue down finding very little resistance. 

"I kind of expected more bad guys what with this being a take over the world plot and all." Tony comments, "And where are all of Strange's men? I know he has more than two wizards."

"I do not know, but I don't like it. There aren't even very many casualties." 

"This is too easy, it's gotta be a trap. It's always a trap." Tony warns his heart full of dread as they take the last step to the next section where the vortex is. It's quiet, too damn quiet. They cautiously advance further coming across no resistance whatsoever as they make their way down the hall that leads to the room. Intricate runes adorn the closed door that leads to the vortex. 

Did the assault fail? Did they rush all this way just for clean up? That can't be it or they would have run into Strange or at the very least Wong doing damage control. Tony may have tuned out nearly everything magic related every time Strange spoke to him but the one thing he did pay attention to was the importance of the Sanctums.

They acted as some sort of magical warding for Earth that prevented (most) unwanted magical beings from invading from other dimensions. Strange stressed time and time again that while he would consult with the Avengers and assist in any way he could, but his greatest priority would always be protecting the Sanctums. He mentioned something about a godlike being that devours life almost ending the universe last time the Sanctums were damaged.

So you know, kind of important. More than two guards important at the very least.

So why the hell isn't anyone here? Even if they were sneak attacked reinforcements could come in from another sanctum nearly instantly with those fancy rings they all have. 

Unless. . .

Unless the attack on this one was a diversion all along and they are hitting another Sanctum instead. Hell, it would be stupid for them to attack the New York Sanctum what with it being on the Avenger's home turf and all. Way too easy for it to go sideways for them if a hero just wandered into their plans.

Shit.

"Please tell me you have one of those rings hidden somewhere unmentionable." Tony asks knowing the answer will be a resounding no before he even asks. He calculates how long it would take them to reach the other Sanctums even if they split up and the answer leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. They can't possibly get to either in time.

"No, but I know where they keep their relics. But there is one problem," Tony holds his breath waiting for it. "I've never been able to successfully use one before. My magic has a tendency to make even simple spells come out wrong."

"Well, it's not like we have another option. What's the worst that could happen? We end up on the moon?"

"It has happened before." Tony stares at him, he must be joking(please be joking), but his expression is dead serious.

"You're shitting me."

"No, but what choice do we have?" Quentin responds already moving towards the vault with a reluctant Tony in tow.

"Have I ever told you how much I hate magic?"

"Only about a hundred times."

"Well make it a hundred and one." Tony says eyeing the relics in the vault warily. He wonders how many of the things stored in what amounts to a fancy basement with the lack of security could bring about wanton destruction. He makes a mental note to have a serious discussion with Strange about his piss poor excuse for security. For Christ's sake the door wasn't even _locked_.

Quentin finds the ring and holds it out looking at it as if it were a live, pissed off snake. Well the feeling is mutual on that one.

"It works by concentrating on a place and picturing it in your mind. The clearer the image the closer you come out to where you want to. I have never been very good with it, maybe it is because I have not been in this universe long enough." He pauses and Tony watches as the gears turn inside his head. Please, please, please be able to pull some BS out of your ass Tony thinks as he waits for the other man to share.

"But maybe, if we do it together? Once, I had another sorcerer sling ring me to Peter, he had me think of the place I had felt him and was able to get me there." He lets out a small sigh, "This is just a theory, or more of a hope really. It might not work."

"Last ditch, pulled out of your ass plans is kind of my thing. Just ask Cap, drives him crazy. So what? We just hold hands and wish really hard?" Quentin lets out a tiny chuckle, it's music to Tony's ears. They very well could be going to their deaths in the next moment, he shouldn't go into that all grim and worried. Tony likes to laugh in the face of death and make jokes the entire way down.

Then again Pepper says he's got unhealthy coping mechanisms and needs to see a therapist so what does he know?

"Couldn't hurt our chances. Picture the outside of the Hong Kong Sanctum." He says as he grabs Tony's hand. It's weird holding hands with him, sure Tony is a touchy feely kind of guy, but he usually reserves it for Rhodey or Cap to piss off his delicate 40's sensibilities. 

"I can do you one better." Tony says as he projects a live picture of the Hong Kong Sanctum in the air. "Maybe if we both stare really hard at this picture it'll work." 

"If this doesn't work. . ." Quentin begins but Tony stops him before he can finish.

"It'll work."

"You can't know that."

"I can, and I do. It'll work because it has to. Failure is not an option, it's not even a word in my dictionary. Pepper gave me a very strongly worded lecture when she found out I crossed it out from her first editions. So yeah, it'll work."

"Okay Tony." Quentin relents, Tony doesn't do last words, or grand goodbyes. It's overdone and therefore lame and beneath someone like him. He's almost died dozens of times, so it's good he's never done one of those awkward goodbyes only to survive it and have to deal with _feelings_ afterwards. 

Quentin swings his arm out in a circle and a shimmering golden portal opens up. On the other side it looks like the right place to Tony so he takes a deep breath muttering how much he hates magic before he steps through the portal with Quentin right behind him. His boots clink on the side walk as he steps out on the streets of Hong Kong. He lets out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding in relief.

"Okay let's hope this is the right one cause I'd rather not have to risk that a second time to check the other Sanctum."

"Agreed."

********** QUENTIN **********

A familiar scene of destruction greets them as they step into the Hong Kong Sanctum, but there are even more motionless forms on the ground. People he knows, kindhearted Sorcerers he had spent months with during his long stay in their halls. It hurts to see the senseless death of so many people that he called friends. There are some faces he doesn't recognize, maybe they are from the London Sect, but he hopes that they are not. Their dress differs from that of the majority of Sorcerers he has met, so he prays to Gaea that they are casualties suffered from the attacking side instead.

Sounds of clashing magics emanate from deeper within the Sanctum, it gives him hope that if people are still fighting then maybe it isn't too late. He shares a look with Tony who gives him a nod before he leads the way deeper inside. 

The fighting on the second level is fierce, a handful of sorcerers are holding off against triple their number. Quentin takes in their battered and torn clothes and can see that the fight has not been going in their favor. Well that is about to change.

Wasting no time he fires off a large blast at the largest group of attacking sorcerers catching them by surprise. A few are fast enough to move out of the way or deflect the worst of the blast, but most are not. The Champion of Gaea has a deep love for all life so taking it away, even from those that deserve it, leaves a bad taste in his mouth. 

But what choice does he have?

The whine of repulsor blasts from behind him take out two more of the attackers. The bleeding and tired defenders of the Sanctum waste no time in taking advantage of the unexpected assistance and go on the offensive. Some of them give him a strange look as if they don't know if they should trust him, but he makes eye contact with Wong, Stephen's second in command who gives him an assessing look and a nod.

The sorcerers under his command seem to take that as approval enough and together they fight back putting the invaders on the defensive. Quentin blocks a spell aimed to disrupt Tony's suit and knocks away a magical whip aimed at pulling Tony through a portal meant to take him out of the fight. Instead the hapless sorcerer gets thrown through his own portal that Quentin so helpfully closes behind him.

"Where the hell is Strange?" Tony demands in between blasts. 

"I wasn't here when it happened but it must have been Mordo. I think he used the Shackles of Challenge."

"Wong, you are by far my favorite wizard, please don't make me have to change my top eight on MagicSpace. Use English, I don't speak voodoo."

"It's like a forced duel in another dimension. Doesn't end until someone wins." A slight pause. “Or dies.”

"Great." Tony's tone is rightfully annoyed.

"Have they made it to the vortex?" Quentin asks Wong who shakes his head in confusion. "Are you sure? There is another me and he can disguise himself." Wong gives him a grim look as he fires off a counter spell.

"I don't know."

"You got this Wong?" Tony asks, and the no nonsense sorcerer just gives him a dull look in response.

"Just go we'll cover you."

Quentin is already dangerously low on energy, he can see it in the way his hands shake so it is a relief that he can save what little he has left for what is to come. The defending sorcerers form a shield wall around the pair of Avengers as they fight through the attackers and make their way to the next level. The remaining defenders form a line at the stairwell and if their determined expressions are anything to judge by Quentin believes they will all lay down their lives before they allow any to follow the two of them as they descend the stairs.

The next level is quiet, too quiet. Part of Quentin hopes and prays that it means Wong and his fellow sorcerers were successful in defending, but he still hasn't seen his alter ego. They race down the halls and when they get to the arcane door they find it open and it's wards disabled. 

Tony calls out a warning but not in time to stop Quentin from rushing forward through the door in his haste. Several loud bangs go off at once and his weakening shield only manages to block a few of the shots fired from the front. He feels sharp pain in his thigh and shoulder as he takes invisible hits from the side and falls down one one knee. He looks up to see his own face materialize out of thin air before him with that ever present mocking grin.

He hates the sight of his own twisted face.

A blast of fire flies over his head hitting Beck and dissolving the illusion. It was beyond stupid of him to rush in knowing full well that he can't see through Beck's illusions. He should have waited for Tony, but it feels like every second of delay is a second they don't have.

And he's right.

As Tony knocks out the drones and the illusion fades he sees Beck standing by the vortex with a victorious expression on his face.

"You're too late!" He laughs, "I thought you died, but I guess that just goes to prove my theory that if you bring a hero to the brink they always manage to find a way. Like cockroaches the lot of you."

Tony fires a blast at Beck's chest but a green shield deflects it and he fires off his own blast sending Iron Man flying into a wall. 

"None of that now, what did you really think I wouldn't be prepared for anything? Nice suit by the way Quentin, amazingly user friendly. Who knew it would work for me as well as it works for you." Beck raises a hand and green energy constricts around the Iron Man suit and he can hear Tony's grunts of pain from across the room. "I really should thank you for letting me truly become Mysterio with all the bells and whistles that go along with it."

He looks confident in his victory, assured that with the suit's power he'll be able to crush Iron Man and make short work of a wounded Quentin.

It makes a laugh rise up from within Quentin. He lets out a long, loud laugh as he pulls himself to his feet. Beck looks at him as if he's lost his mind, but he doesn't know.

He couldn't know.

Quentin lifts one hand open palm out towards Beck and the other man raises a green shield expecting an attack but when Quentin closes his fist his expression changes to pain as he cries out. The metal of the suit clinks as it shrinks under Quentin's command.

"Did you really think it wouldn't listen to it's creator over you?" Quentin asks, taking a step forward and squeezing the suit more. "Did you really think that it's magic wouldn't obey my own?" Another step and another cry of pain as Beck falls to his knees. "Did you really think it would protect you from me?"

Beck spits out blood as he falls forward onto his hands and knees but still he grins with his blood stained teeth.

"It doesn't matter, it's already done. You've lost, you all have lost! Even if I die, the world of heroes is at an end, it's too late to stop it!" He yells out with a wet laugh. Quentin turns his gaze to the pool in the center of the room, it glows green and not the pure white of this world's magic. His heart stops. 

No.

No!

He releases his hold over Beck who falls limp to the ground like a doll with its strings cut and yet still the man laughs. Quentin runs over to the pool and sees a brightly shining green crystal in the water. It pulses with power, his power, as it contaminates the pool of shimmering magic turning it more and more green as the spells within it work.

He doesn't know enough about this world's magic to stop this, wouldn't even know where to begin or even what its full intent is. All he knows is that if he doesn't stop it now before it spreads to the ley lines and the other vortexes all will be lost. It might already be too late but he can't give up now. He reaches into the pool with his right arm and grasps the crystal in his hand and a surge of power hits him not unlike the lightning of using the gauntlet so long ago.

He can feel the magic in the crystal and that of the vortex of this world warring as they arc up his already scarred arm. His nerves are on fire but he holds on for dear life, for the life of everyone he loves and cares for. 

Quentin may not know much of the magics of this world but he knows his own. It whispers to him of death, so much death. It goes against everything Gaea's light was made for, the very magic itself rebels against the commands of the crystal and that gives Quentin hope that there may still yet be another way.

Blue eyes close as he concentrates on the feeling of Gaea's love, her light, and the life she gave up for her child, for him to live. He surrounds himself in the warm feeling of her love and care, pictures the first and last tender smile she had graced him with so long ago-- and he holds onto it as the warring magics burn around and within him. 

He can feel the power flowing through him tearing him up inside, burning him up. Not so different from when he had wielded the gauntlet. Months of his own drained power and that of an entire world warring with his battered body as the battlefield. The crystal feels like a live wire in his hand and the pool of the vortex acid, but he dares not let go for even a moment and upset the balance in the warring magics. 

Gaea was the mother of all life in his world, she would not stand for her gift to be used for needless death and destruction. Images of flowers sprouting in the once barren wasteland of his home world fill his vision, he can almost smell the scent of their blossoms. 

Creation. That is what her power has always been for and its truth resonates from within the trapped power in the crystal weakening the foul magic's hold over it. A smile curves Quentin's lips as he feels the tide of the battle turning, he just has to hold on a little longer. 

One second and then another before the crystal shatters in his hand with an explosive blast releasing the stored power flinging him back and sending him skidding on his bareback across the tiles of the floor. It takes a moment for the ringing in his ears to fade to a whine as he looks over at Tony who remains still against the wall. He holds his breath and begs Gaea to see the other man move, anything to show that it worked. 

That he didn't fail another world.

It feels like an eternity before there is a groan and the faceplate slides up revealing a still breathing Tony who looks shell shocked. The air goes out of Quentin in a rush of relief as he lets go letting his head fall back onto the ground. 

He did it.

They're safe, all of them are safe. No one else has to die today. A smile curves his lips as his eyes slide shut, he can rest now safe in the knowledge that he kept his promise to Peter. That he could save him one last time. Tony shouts at him from across the room but his voice sounds like it is miles away as darkness pulls him under.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wanted to wait to post this until I was 100% done with the story but my motivation is waning so figure I should get this out in hopes it gives me a kick start. Sorry for the cliffhanger though, been sitting here all morning working on the next chapter and it is about half done but it's going soooo sloooooow. Still have a few more days off to write before I go back to work though so hopefully I can get 'er done.
> 
> Tony took this one over a bit, sorry, not sorry. His perspective is just too fun to write and it's been a while since I did anyone besides Peter/Quentin.
> 
> Hope the fighting is okay, I can't write that for shit so tried to have as little of it as possible in here haha.


	34. By Gaea's Grace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (:

********** STRANGE **********

Between one blink and the next Strange finds himself not in the Hong Kong Sanctum but in a dark place with sharp, unnatural edges and shapes. Not unlike the mirror dimension, but far more menacing. Some distance away stands Mordo, a face he never thought to see again with how they parted.

It had hurt to have his friend turn his back on him and their order after the fight against Dormammu and his cultists. He had served the Ancient One for many years and yet when the truth of her unnaturally long life came to light he could not forgive her. When he left the order he took many with him. Strange had thought that he meant to form his own order, and it seems that he did, but not at all how Strange might have imagined.

"Bold of you to attack me in broad daylight, but I must take points off for the use of trickery to get so close." Strange takes a step to the side as he talks, "So what, you left the order and now what? You've taken up trying your hand at villainy? I know it's hard to find work in this economy but there are programs now, and it's not like any of us wouldn't have helped out."

Mordo remains silent, not rising to his baiting words, he merely mirrors Strange's stance as they slowly circle one another. Each waiting for the other to make the first move.

"How did you manage to get past the warding with those illusions anyway? Please tell me you didn't make a deal with an inter-dimensional deity to get around it. That would just be boring."

"Still in love with the sound of your own voice I see." Mordo says in lieu of answering, not that Strange expected him to. "I had almost forgotten how much you like to talk and talk and talk."

"Well one of us has to keep the conversation going, you're not really holding up your end." Strange stops circling and gives Mordo a long look. "What is it you want, Mordo? Did you come here to challenge me for the title of Sorcerer Supreme? Was this all an elaborate mutiny? Because I assure you that you could have just texted me and we could have skipped the theatrics and had an old fashioned duel anytime you wanted."

"I neither want nor care for titles. They are meaningless, the only thing that matters is power and controlling who has it."

"So what? Are you here to fine me for using magic in a no magic zone? What are you the magic police now?" Mordo's lips twitch up in a smile. It's not a nice one.

"Something like that." He takes a fighting stance and flicks his fingers at Strange asking him to bring it. "Is your plan to talk me to death or can we get on with it? While I would prefer to have you on your knees begging for mercy as I strip the magic from your body, stalling will do you no favors. The longer you drag this out, the closer my plans come to fruition."

Strange doesn't say anything, doesn't even twitch an eyebrow before he launches out a whip of magical energy lightning fast but as Mordo was the one who trained him after all he has his jointed staff out to block it with ease. He knocks aside the whip and holds his arms out wide.

"You can do better than that." Mordo taunts flicking his fingers at Strange again in an attempt to goad him into making a mistake.

"But can you?" Strange draws runes in the air sending a wave of magical fire at Mordo but he counters with his own and the two balls of flame explode in the middle between them. 

They trade spells back and forth as they air jump and fly around the arena of twisted shapes but with each spell and counter spell the blasts get closer and closer to Strange. It's as if the more he fights the stronger Mordo becomes, it is worrisome. Strange goes on the defense blocking spells rather than attack with his own and still he feels a drain on his magical abilities.

He flies off to the edges of their arena as his mind races to think of a reason why when he looks back down to see the manacle that brought them here still on his arm and glowing brightly. His eyes flick up to see it's sister on Mordo's arm glowing even brighter. Whatever it is, Strange is certain it is the culprit to his weakening powers.

"Ah I see you finally noticed. Took you longer than I expected to see the obvious, rumors of your ‘great’ intellect have been greatly exaggerated." Mordo says stopping his assault for a moment. "They are called the Shackles of Challenge, something that has been in my personal collection for decades. Long ago before the Ancient One brought sorcerers under her thumb we were a free people. 

"Sometimes sorcerers would clash and it brought destruction to the lands and endangered our secrecy so these works of art were crafted to minimize collateral damage. It's actually a simple spell, it binds us to fight in this place until one person loses consciousness or draws their last breath and it keeps the outside world safe.

"It's a shame they went out of use and were banned by the Ancient One in favor of using the mirror dimension for duels, because these add a dramatic flair I know you must enjoy." Mordo smiles in a cruel way, "Plus they have the added benefit of working in the challenger's favor. The more magic you use the more powerful I become until your inevitable defeat."

"So you cheat."

"All is fair in Magic and War. Now fight me like your life depends upon it because it does!" 

Strange's mind races for a way to beat Mordo, he was already a very powerful sorcerer even before this. He knows he must be selective and careful with the spells and the magic he uses, he curses himself for not realizing there was a catch to this sooner. Already Mordo has enough of his power to make this dangerous. 

Very dangerous.

A fight for his life indeed. He goes completely on the defensive choosing to dodge attacks rather than block or deflect. He has to wait for the perfect moment. A slip up to go all in on. He can ill afford to give the mad sorcerer any more power than he already has. They jump and fly all around the arena for long minutes but still he feels his power draining. 

Great. It must have a timer as well. That's fine, he works _extremely_ well under pressure. Seconds and minutes tick by before it hits him like Eureka! With a burst of speed he flies right into Mordo's space surprising the other sorcerer and putting him on the defensive with his jointed staff at the ready to counter whatever spell Strange has planned to use as his magical Hail Mary.

What he isn't prepared for is Strange to full body tackle him to the ground. Strange gets his arm around Mordo's neck and wraps his legs around the other man's and holds on for dear life. Mordo tries jump kicking away but doesn't accomplish more than pushing them on to their sides on the ground. Strange's cloak flaps around the other man's face and bats at his hands disrupting any spells before they can even be formed as they struggle.

"Guess it's a good thing I don't need magic to kick your ass then isn't it?" Strange taunts in between gasping breaths as he uses the sleeper hold Captain Rogers had taught him over the summer just in case of a situation just like this. At the time he didn't really see the benefit and bitched and moaned about it the entire time, but Rogers was very persuasive about him needing to know the basics of hand to hand combat if he was going to work with the Avengers. 

"You count on your magic like I counted on my strength. It's great until you fight someone who levels the playing field and then it becomes a handicap." Rogers had said to him as he laid his finger over Stephen's chest. "You are more than just your magic, never forget that."

The former world class surgeon holds on with a tight grip until he feels the other man go limp against him and in the next second the shackle on his arm falls away and he's transported back to the Sanctum. 

It's a wreck. A literal smoking wreck.

His heart thunders in his chest as he takes in the familiar scene of a Sanctum torn apart. His eyes dart around taking in the too still forms of his fellow sorcerers on the ground. He knew Mordo was angry at the Ancient One and himself over the choices they had made, but to go so far as to hurt and kill the very people he once called brothers and sisters. . .

Strange shakes his head and focuses his thoughts away from worrying about things too late to be changed. He has to find out what has happened while he was taken away for their little duel. His ears pick up the unmistakable sounds of battle below and he rushes down with spells at the ready.

Blue green eyes flick about rapidly as he assesses the situation. He spots Wong first as he is rallying the remaining sorcerers under his command against another force that must be Mordo's followers. Torn clothing, the smell of singed hair, and heavy breathing leads Strange to believe that they have been fighting fiercely since the moment he was stolen away. Both sides look as if the fighting has been hard but his own people have a fire in their eyes as they fight to protect the Sanctum, whereas Mordo's people lack the motivating force of desperation his own people have.

Though his own people are outnumbered Strange knows that they will fight to the last man to protect the Sanctum, whereas the same could not be said of Mordo's men. Strange opens a portal and Mordo's still form drops from above them to hit the ground with a dull thud behind the attacking sorcerers. 

They turn to see their leader down for the count with Strange floating above him with his arms crossed like a disappointed parent would look down upon his misbehaving children. He can see it in their eyes as the fight goes out of many, if not all of them. They had left the order to follow Mordo but without him what hope do they have of winning against the Order and the Sorcerer Supreme himself?

"Fashionably late as usual I see." Wong says with a smirk that Strange returns.

"Oh you know how it is, had to catch up with an old _friend_." Strange says to Wong before turning his attention back to the now nervous attacking sorcerers. "I don't know why you are here, nor what you hoped to accomplish, but it won't work. It's already failed and your misguided leader defeated.

"There has been enough bloodshed, enough destruction for one lifetime so how about you all lower your hands and we do this the nice way." They share nervous glances with one another but no clear leader steps up to take charge with Mordo down. "Or we can do this the hard way. Choice is yours." Strange says unfolding his arms with spells at the ready. They have no way of knowing how much power he expended fighting Mordo, he could be at nearly full power for all that they know.

They don't risk it. 

In one's and two's they lower their hands and with a nod from Strange Wong and his people bind the wayward sorcerers. Wong gives him a worried look and his eyes flick downwards towards the stairs they had been guarding. He has always been a man of few words so that is all Strange needs to know his attention is needed elsewhere.

He flies down the stairs and his heart stops when he sees the heavily warded door to the vortex left open and a bright green glow casting shadows from within. He flies forward and the scene before him is jarring. He notes the motionless form of Quentin, or at least the man who was masquerading as him anyway, lying crumpled beside the vortex. Nearby are broken pieces of machinery and to the far right against the wall lies a prone form he can't make any details out what with Iron Man leaning over him. Strange can only see dirty bare feet sticking out of even dirtier pale green pants that could only be scrubs. He's seen enough of them when he was a world renowned surgeon to spot them, but why there would be someone in scrubs in the very heart of his Sanctum is beyond him.

But none of that is relevant to the Sorcerer Supreme. He notices the small details of people in the room and discards them as unimportant, background noise, his every thought and worry is on that of the ominously glowing vortex before him. The heart of his world's magic is glowing with a sickly green color instead of the healthy white it should be.

The once pure white of the vortex has rivers of green running through it. He closes his eyes and uses his magical sight to see the ley lines leading away from the vortex and they too have twisting green light flowing through them.

He knows at once it must be Quentin's power but he doesn't understand what it could be doing. The man from another universe and this world's magic have never meshed well, it was a struggle to teach the man simple spells but here he finds them not clashing but. . .growing? Flowing within one another?

Reopening his physical eyes he notices tiny shards of crystal all about the vortex but whatever magic it once held is either spent or destroyed. He rubs his hand on his chin as he tries to uncover what Quentin's magic is doing to his world, but it doesn't appear to be harmful. In fact, it seems benign, but its presence is worrisome none the less.

"Strange." A shaky metallic voice comes from behind him drawing his attention from the swirling magics. The Sorcerer Supreme straightens and turns around to see Stark with his face plate up and a worried expression marring his features. Strange gives one last backwards look at the vortex, his instincts tell him whatever is happening? It's far too late to stop, but whatever nefarious deeds Mordo had planned?

Strange doesn't think that they went quite as the other man had hopped. Not with Stark here, the man with the supernatural ability to be the monkey wrench thrown in to thwart world ending disasters. How Stark came to be aware or involved with something, anything to do with magic that he is oh so vocal in loathing is another mystery though. 

But one that is quickly answered when Strange takes a few steps forward and can see the face of the unconscious man laying on the floor.

The hair is too long, as is the beard, and his face is sunken in slightly but it is unmistakable. 

That is Quentin Beck. The real one. There is no doubt in Strange's mind of that fact, and it helps to explain how Stark might have gotten involved, and would even explain the burst of power Strange had felt across the world even while the impostor had stood before him. The mystery of what happened to bring the two of them here will have to remain just that, a mystery once Strange's doctor instincts take charge as his honed senses take in the too still form below him.

He has long cuts that appear to have been cauterized shut along each of his arms, worrisome but not life threatening. Next his trained eyes take note of what can only be a gunshot wound in his right thigh and left shoulder but it appears as if Stark has already attended to those injuries judging by the quick application of medigel from his suit. Blood loss from those wounds along with the worrisome cauterized wounds on his arms will be an issue. But there is something more troublesome.

He's barely breathing. His chest barely moves as the man takes in too slow, jagged breaths.

Strange crouches down and puts a hand out feeling for a pulse on the other man's neck. It's faint, fading, soon to stop. His eyes rake across the other man's body noting the Infinity Stone scarred arm is now a faintly smoking wreck and the scent of charred flesh is strong in the air. The sight is not unlike that of Doctor Banner's arm after suffering the effects of channeling so much raw power.

Strange knows full well what sorts of power would be needed to create such a wound and as the Infinity Stones were returned back to their rightful places in time there can only be one culprit. What would drive a man to stick his arm into the swirling vortex of power and hold on while it rends his flesh and tears at the very fabric of his being?

Is that why the vortex is tainted with Quentin's magic? Did the man use his own power to stop whatever it was that Mordo had planned? 

In the next second the retired doctor realizes why the man's arms look so odd beyond that of the smoking flesh. 

They are bare. 

The bracers the greatest minds of this world had spent countless hours working on are missing. His heart sinks as he sees how dire the situation truly is. He switches to using his magical sight but gets nothing from Quentin. Not even a faint aura of his other worldly power remains. He must have given everything he had to stop whatever was contained within the now dead power crystal that lays shattered across the room.

"Where are his bracers? What happened?" Strange demands needing more information if he stands a chance of saving the last remnant of a dead universe from fading away into nothingness.

"I don't know, he was held captive. Didn't have them when he called me." Tony answers the first question in a rush of air speaking fast. "Beck, the asshole on the ground over there, had some plan to take us out. All of us at once. He did something to your magical kiddy pool over there and Quentin reached in and stopped it. I don't know how, magic is totally not my thing."

"He's fading fast. We need to get the bracers back on him if we are going to stand even the slightest chance of saving him." Strange announces earning a nod from Stark. His mind races as he thinks, if the man was held captive perhaps the use of magic he had felt was him escaping? He has no other leads and no time to waste trying to interrogate any of Mordo's lackeys. He calculates the risks and how long Quentin _doesn't_ have and decides to risk it on a gamble.

He concentrates on where he had felt the explosion of power across the world, even now the faint wisps of otherworldly power cling to the area making it easier for him to lock onto it. He reopens his eyes and moves his arm in a circle opening a portal and steps thru.

"Wait here." He commands Stark who, for once in his life, doesn't say anything and just obeys with a nod looking down at Quentin with a frown.

Strange looks around and is impressed by the level of destruction wrought in this place. The building is naught more than a pile of rubble and if he were looking for anything mundane his chances of finding it some time this year would be astronomical. It's a very good thing he's not looking for anything mundane, but instead the unique, highly extricate spell work of the bracers with his otherworldly sight. He can 'see' them several floors below ground level attached to some other magical device. He swings his hand around in a small circle forming a portal below them and allowing them to fall through into his hands. 

At least they should have fallen into his hands. Instead the metal clinks and hangs suspended in the air by chains covered in runes. Advanced runes, the likes of which only Mordo or Strange himself could have fabricated.

His mind races as he reads the runes and uncovers their purpose. A ball of fury builds in his chest, such runes have been banned since ancient times. To think that someone he once called friend would fall to such lows as to steal another's power, his very life force away for his own purposes. . .

He clenches his jaw and pushes his anger away, he doesn't have time for it. Doesn't have time to decipher a way to unlock them from the braces so he just closes the portal severing them. The remaining runes on the chain glow brightly then go dark before falling away from the bracers like dust. One of the most important lessons he has learned during his time as Sorcerer Supreme is that the simplest of solutions are too often overlooked in favor of complex magics to solve problems.

Wasting no time he reopens the portal back to the Hong Kong Sanctum and steps through. Stark's keen eyes catch sight of the bracers in Strange's hands and he lets out a small sigh of relief. The Sorcerer Supreme kneels on the ground and carefully fastens the bracers onto Quentin's arms, taking extra care to not cause further harm on his injured arm. 

Holding his breath as the bracers lock in place Strange waits for it to take effect but the runes along the bracers remain dark. His eyebrows scrunch together on his forehead in confusion before he realizes his mistake. They have always required the power of the man they are meant to keep in this universe to work-- but he has run empty. 

Fuck.

"Why isn't it working? It's supposed to be working." Stark asks, looking quickly between the inactive runes and Strange's face needing an answer. Strange looks back at him with a grim expression.

"He burnt up all his magic, there isn't enough to reactivate their enchantment." He says softly, gently. Like one does when giving bad news. Stark looks up at his sharply expression full of anger.

"There- There has to be something! We don't just give up."

His mind is racing though possibilities and discarding them just as fast as he can come up with them. If the facility where Quentin was being held hadn't been destroyed. . .if he had access to just a small part of his stolen power. . .he might as well be throwing coins into a fountain for all the good his wishes are doing them.

Time is of the essence but to panic now would be folly. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath and holds it for a long moment and when he breathes it out along with it he releases the panic that had begun to rise in his system. When he reopens his eyes he looks down at Quentin, really looks with both his magical and medical knowledge working, not allowing one or the other to cloud his vision.

Observe. 

His wounds are not currently life threatening, although they are serious. The blood loss is the most concerning of them all. On closer examination of the injured arm it is not as bad as he first feared. While it **is** smoking, it seems almost superficial. Strange wipes away some of the blood and grime and instead of seeing ruined flesh beneath he finds the familiar rainbow lightning scar patterns now interlaced with new solid white marks that seem to twist around the lightning scars like vines growing along a tree's branches.

Those must have been caused by the vortex of his world's magic interacting with the remnants of the Infinity Stone wounds. But what it could mean, why it would behave in such a way is a mystery. This is unprecedented. While there have been entire works written on the effects of using the Time Stone with various levels of success(and more often with explosive failures) with magical devices, the most famous and successful of them Strange's once treasured Eye of Agamotto, there is nothing on how magic would behave when interacting with _all_ of the Infinity Stones.

Not even the Ancient One had ever thought of the Stones being used together as a possibility. One Stone alone holds vast power, to even dream of using them all would be madness driven by only the most desperate. 

And yet here they are still suffering in the wake of one mad titian. 

Strange looks closer at the entwined scars and while there is no hint of the man's magic there is a faint, almost not there sense of magic about them. The more fresh white lines have a stronger feeling about them, but still so low that he only just barely sensed it having overlooked it in his earlier examination. He cannot even begin to guess at what effects, if any, this could have on the man so he turns his laser focused attention elsewhere.

He casts the spell to see auras and has to blink rapidly at what he sees. His aura has changed. Is changing. That shouldn't. . .that shouldn't be possible. Barring meeting your soul mate a person's aura doesn't fluctuate much from day to day. While it can subtly shift colors after a person has a breakthrough or changes in their character it takes time. The Ancient One had told him how he had changed since the day he showed up on her doorstep and when he became her right hand man. It was night and day but happened so slowly that from day to day the change wasn't noticeable.

But what is happening with the man on the ground is anything but subtle. It flickers between the vibrant green he had the last time Strange had seen him to an almost blinding white, then shifts through all the colors in between before fading to near black before cycling anew. All in the span of a few moments. It is almost as if there is a battle warring inside the unconscious man even at this very moment between all the magics he has subjected himself to since he came into this world.

It hits Strange like an epiphany and all at once he knows that it is not the bracers, nor the man's wounds that has him on his deathbed. It is this. Whatever it is. 

Strange internally curses himself for not studying more of the healing arts. While most people who would tell you that you aren't in good spirits and need them aligned for your health would be scamming bullshitters trying to get you out of your paycheck there is a kernel of truth to it. Illness, cancer, mental health, and the mourning of a loved one can and will affect a person's aura causing it to darken unhealthily. In cases of a terminal illness the aura will fade and grow darker until it finally becomes black as death claims them.

Some of the sorcerers that call this Sanctum home were practitioners in healing auras of those in need, but Strange had always put off studying under them as there was always a need for something more tangible. His heart sinks not knowing how many good sorcerers--no good men and women he's lost this day. There might very well be none of the masters of that healing art left for all that Strange knows.

He vows to take more care with his studies so this can be prevented in the future, but for now he once again pushes his feelings down for they will not help in the here and now. He watches as Quentin's aura spends more and more time on the darker colors and knows he's running out of time. Even if he had a master or was one himself of the healing arts he knows it would be beyond him. How could one sorcerer, no matter how powerful, hope to balance a war between the Stones, the Vortex, and Quentin's own life force?

Suddenly a sound breaks the deathly silence over them. It sounds like. . .music. Strange looks over at Tony whose face does a complicated thing. At first his face is full of relief which quickly gets taken over by dread as the song's notes continue to play and echo in the otherwise silent chamber. As soon as the first lyrics are sung Strange knows exactly who is calling and Tony's complicated reaction makes perfect sense.

The one person in the multiverse who stands a chance of saving the dying man at their feet chose this very moment to call. Perhaps the whispers of Those Who Watch and set things in motion are more than just a fantastical hope for a meaning out of a chaotic universe and life.

********** PETER **********

Peter wakes up.

He didn't think he would wake up so that in itself is a surprise. His eyes fly open as his heart races with his last memory of being buried alive. Again. God he hates super villains so much. Like seriously, not cool man. He's only just barely gotten over the worst of his claustrophobia for crying out loud. Now he's gonna end up sliding all the way back and wake up crying and begging for help in the middle of the night again.

Well, at least he woke up he guesses. The room is bright, painfully bright and it takes a few moments for his eyes to focus enough to make out any details in the room. White ceiling, white walls, fluorescent tube lighting. He looks down at himself and sees a white sheet.

Hospital then. Thanks to his healing factor he's avoided going to a hospital for himself ever since he was bitten, but he's spent a lot of time in the Avenger's one and the facility at Wakanda when Quentin was fading in and out so the sight is unmistakable. 

Shit! Quentin!

As soon as he thinks about him and the last thing he saw. . .he's halfway out of the bed pulling at the tubes and wires connecting him to the machines without conscious thought. He has to get to him! His hands fly to his bandaged chest but his amulet is missing. He hasn't taken the amulet off outside of taking showers since the day Quentin had given it to him, it is to the point he feels naked and uncertain without its weight against his chest.

Panic rises in his chest as his eyes roam wildly about the room needing to find it. It's only a split second before he spots it but it feels like way longer. Having already sat up all he has to do is reach over and it's in his hands. His fingers curl around the golden metal as he lifts it and brings it to his chest with his eyes sliding closed as he concentrates.

And concentrates.

But just as it had not worked while he was in that b-b-building it doesn't work here. He feels nothing. Not even a hint of the man he loves. It could be something the Evil!Beck had done to block its magic, or-or God Peter doesn't know what could do it, but he worries.

The last he saw of Quentin. . .surrounded by red. . .

He fears the worst. And once he thinks it, it's all he can think about. What if he can't feel anything because he's- because he's--

Dead. 

Just the thought feels like a body blow to the chest. He went through hell when he lost Ben, and it'll be a hundred times worse with Quentin. The man he loves and had hoped to spend the rest of his life with, had been picturing their life together before bed most nights even. A slice of happiness, a soft smile and warm embrace to come home to. God did he ever want that with Quentin. He had spent most of the time growing up dreaming about having someone to come home to. Dreamed of having someone who, no matter how ugly the outside world was, could brighten up his day with a smile. 

For once in his life he had himself convinced that the slice of happiness he shared with Quentin would be something he could keep. Every time the dark corners of his mind told him he didn't deserve happiness, that Quentin wasn't his to keep he ignored it. Fought and argued against it. 

They were soulmates, like its cosmic destiny for them to be together or something. So why wouldn't he get to keep Quentin? Why can't he keep him? A sob builds up in his chest but he struggles to keep it down cause he knows the second he lets it out he won't stop. Not for a long, long time. Peter clenches his fist around the amulet and prays, begs, bargains with the universe for it to throw him one last miracle. Silence is the only answer to his prayers and with a sigh he reopens his eyes and notices a soft blinking light on the table next to him.

His phone. 

In his grief and panic he had almost completely forgotten he's not alone in this. There are people he can call. Tony will know what to do. Reaching over, and wow okay that hurt, he had forgotten he was **shot** until right this second when he pulls on fresh stitches. 

But it doesn't matter because then he has his phone and he can get help. He unlocks it and the first thing he sees is the Avenger's mayday alert, that explains why he isn't still buried under a pile of rubble at least. Maybe someone caught on, or maybe the creep slipped up getting over confident. 

There is another secondary alert for. . .Body Snatcher's Protocol? It sounds vaguely familiar, like it was from some really old movie that Tony would have watched when he was a kid. "Tall Dark and Mysterious" Peter mouths knowing that it could only be one person. 

Yup. Okay. So one: The Avengers know there is a Big ProblemTM, Two: They know it has something to do with that asshole who looks like Quentin.

That's good. 

He hits the speed dial for Tony and it rings, and rings, and rings. Worry twists his stomach wondering what Tony could be dealing with right now. What other horrible plans that asshole had in store for the Avengers that would make Tony not answer immediately. His heart beats in his chest as it rings a fifth time before the call connects.

"Tony! It's Quentin, he's hurt like real bad and he needs help. Like bad. Please you have to get to him I don-I don't know what you're doing but it's life or death!" His words tumble out of his mouth in a rush before the other man even has the chance to speak. 

"I know, kid." Peter lets out a sigh and sort of deflates back onto the hospital bed at hearing that. Then shoots back up just as his shoulders hit the pillow when he realizes how off his tone was. Like he has bad news he really doesn't want to share.

"Did you find him? Is he okay? What's going on?" He demands rapid fire. There is a soft sigh on the other side of the line that makes Peter's heart sink.

"He found me, was the one who got you out actually." Wow, okay Peter wasn't expecting that. Just how did Quentin manage to go from. . .that to rescuing him? Did the amulet work after all? How did he escape? Why is Tony pausing so long before answering about how Quentin is doing?

Peter is in full blown panic mode as adrenaline spikes through his system clearing out the remnants of the sedatives. He needs to get up, help, do something other than sit here uselessly in bed but he doesn't even know where they are or how he can help. The silence drags for only a moment but it feels like forever, it feels like the pause before a death sentence before Tony answers.

"He's uh, shit kid he's-- God damn it Strange! Tell me you have something!" Tony demands before the call cuts off suddenly leaving Peter staring at his home screen in shock. Are they still fighting who or whatever had orchestrated this all? His blood is ice in his veins expecting the worst.

What he doesn't expect to happen is a golden portal opening up in his room barely a moment later. His knee bounces rapid fire as he waits with held breath before Tony steps through in the Iron Man suit. Peter notices his hair is wild with sweat and his expression is grim, though he won't meet Peter's eyes as he looks down. Behind him steps another figure through the portal, in the back of his mind he registers that it is Mr. Strange but then he catches sight of what--**who** is in his arms and all other thought flies from his head.

"Quentin!" He cries out stumbling in his haste to get out of the bed and over to his lover but Tony catches him with an outstretched arm.

"Easy kid, you've had a long day." Tony says and he doesn't let go of Peter instead helping him hobble over to Strange and the precious cargo in his arms held aloft with magic. 

"He's not moving. Why isn't he moving?" Peter asks out loud without meaning to. He can't take his eyes off of Quentin. The large man seems so small and fragile laying there so still. Too still. Peter's vision blurs, he thought he burned through the sedatives already so why is everything so blurry? He blinks and feels wetness slide down his cheeks.

Oh.

He reaches out with a shaky hand for Quentin but stops when he sees all the dried blood. His eyes dart around taking in the sight of GUNSHOT WOUNDS?? His eyes skirt over the wounds on his arms, he can't. Can't even bear to look at them. He takes a deep breath to steady himself and instead reaches for Quentin's face, pausing just before touching his skin. Afraid.

Afraid for it to be cold. 

His fingers tremble as he closes the last of the distance to cup his lover's face. Fresh tears spill when he feels warmth. Maybe they weren't too late. He looks at his lover's face, seemingly relaxed in sleep but he can see the tightness of his skin, the bags under his eyes as if he hasn't been sleeping well for a long time. Which if Peter is right, and he knows deep down that he is, Quentin would have been held in captivity for months now so it's no surprise he hasn't been getting enough beauty rest, not that he's anything other than beautiful even now covered in dried blood and grime.

He brushes his thumb against Quentin's cheek bone and leans in to brush his lips against his lover's. He pulls back after the barest brush of lips sucking in a shaky breath. It is then when he realizes his lover is barely breathing, and what breaths he does manage are shaky and erratic. His head shoots up to look at Tony, but he still refuses to meet his eyes. He twists his head to look at Mr. Strange. His expression is grim, but not hopeless.

"What's wrong? Wh-Why isn't-- why isn't he?" Peter can't finish it, won't accept it. Strange raises his arms and with them Quentin rises, Peter takes a step back out of the way and watches as his lover is slowly lowered onto the hospital bed he was in only moments before. 

"He's lost a lot of blood, and spent all of his magic. All of it." He says pointedly, but gently. "He reached into the vortex and gave all that he had to stop Mordo, to save us all. To save you." Nonononono

This can't be happening. Not again. Not ever again. He can't lose Quentin just when he gets him back, it's not fair. Fresh tears stream down his face, he tries to scrub them away with his free hand that isn't clinging to Quentin's good hand, but they won't stop coming. Won't stop falling.

"There-- There has to be something we can do! Right? Right?!" He begs looking at Tony who meets his eyes for the first time since he walked through the portal. Peter almost wishes he hadn't. He looks sorry, so very sorry and Peter doesn't want to see it. He has nothing to be sorry for because-- 

Because they are going to save him. They have to.

"There is a chance." Strange speaks up, "A small, tiny chance." He corrects seeing the hope in the young man's eyes. "More of a hope really."

"Well whatever it is we have to do it!" Peter exclaims.

"His aura, his very being is at war with the magics he has wielded and fought against and he's losing. Badly. If he were any other man he would have been consumed by the vortex, a ghost lost in its aethers." Tony gives Strange a withering look at his brutal honesty, but Peter appreciates it. As much as he can appreciate anything right now anyway. Doctors had tried to sugar coat the bad news about Ben, they tried to let Peter and May down softly but it didn't help. At least this way he knows exactly what is going on, what the odds are.

No allowing false hope to build up to make the crashing fall of reality that much more cruel.

"If he did not have a soul bond it wouldn't matter how powerful or strong he is, the damage is too great for a healer." He pauses for a moment looking directly in Peter's eyes. "But he does have a soul mate, someone to draw strength from. You.

"Soul bonds are something that transcends magic and the normal rules of the universe, the multiverse. Through your bond you can give him the strength that he lacks. The purest essence of who he is untainted by the magics that are killing him. This is all theory, things I've learned from my own bond, but it's a chance. The only chance he has."

"What can I do? How can I save him?" Peter asks in a small voice as he looks down at Quentin so fragile in the hospital bed. He runs his fingers through Quentin's long hair, not so different from how they first met. It's kind of poetic in a way he thinks with a stray thought, that they once again are in this position.

"Hold on to him for dear life and don't let go. Maybe the bond will prove strong enough to turn the tide, maybe the fate that binds you both will overcome the damage done."

The responsibility of having someone's life rest on his shoulders is not a new one, but this weight feels too heavy. It's one thing having to be faster, stronger, or better to save someone, but to have to trust in some mystical bond he doesn't fully understand is another. How can he save his love if he doesn't even understand how?

As if sensing the inner struggle going on in Peter's head Strange, in a rare show of compassion, reaches out and touches Peter's shoulder. Peter turns his head to look up at Strange with his heart in his eyes, begging him to tell him how to fix this. How to save him.

"Trust your heart, it will know what to do."

As if it were that simple, as if it weren't a matter of life and death of the person who means the most to Peter in the entire world.

But maybe it is and it's not like he has any other options. Peter lets out a shaky breath and tunes out the room. His worries. The entire rest of the world. None of it matters, nothing matters but Quentin. He looks down at his lover wishing beyond anything to see those beautiful blue eyes open up and give him a soft smile meant only for him. He wants that more than anything else in the world.

Peter carefully climbs into the bed, oh so carefully as to not hurt him and positions himself so that he can curl around his left side. He carefully grabs Quentin's right hand mindful of its injuries and holds it within his own. He brings their hands up to rest over Quentin's heart and lays his head down on his shoulder so that he can watch the slow rise and fall of his chest as he breathes.

He isn't expecting fireworks, or magical light to shine upon them to show that it's working, that they have a chance. It is more subtle than that. Slowly he watches as Quentin's breaths even out, and can feel his heartbeat growing stronger under his hand. He feels like they are in the eye of the hurricane, he knows how important this is, knows there is a war within Quentin at this very moment for his life, but feels only peace.

Whatever is going on he feels like the two of them are outside it now that they are together. As they were always meant to be. Time passes without notice, people leave and enter the room, but Peter's every thought is on how good it feels to have Quentin in his arms, how warm he is against him, and how he wants to stay here forever. 

The light in the room dims, the only clue Peter has of time passing but he dares not sleep though it must be night. He may have been shot and had a warehouse dropped on him(again), but his body's need for rest isn't even a concern while he watches the gentle rise and fall of his lover's chest. He's afraid that if he closes his eyes, even for a moment, the spell over them that is keeping Quentin here will be broken and so he is awake all through the night until the room grows brighter again.

There is sound, someone, then a few someones talking around him but he can't understand them. Eventually the sounds stop and he assumes they must have given up and left but he can't even feel bad. This might be his last moments with the man he loves, he dares not waste them. 

His heart is telling him that it is working, but he can't take the chance. Strange told him to hold on and not let go so that is exactly what he is doing. Until he sees blue eyes open once more the whole rest of the world can go to hell as far as Peter is concerned. He's never been a selfish person, has gone above and beyond to make the world a better place even if it is just lending an ear to a lonely old lady.

But with this he wants to be selfish. He would gladly trade his powers, being an Avenger, and everything he owns if he could just keep Quentin. He never knew just how lonely he was until Quentin came into his life, even before their romantic feelings came into play. He would even trade the romance and love as long as he could have Quentin in his life. Not that there is anyone to make that sort of bargain but if there were he wouldn't even hesitate. The world would be too dark of a place without Quentin in it to brighten it up. 

His thoughts spin round and round going nowhere for hours when it happens.

The hand within his own twitches, just the smallest amount sending a surge of hope and adrenaline flooding through Peter's system banishing his fatigued thoughts. He holds his breath and waits for it to happen again, afraid he imagined it. One moment, then two before another tiny twitch of fingers against his own.

Peter is so happy he could jump up and dance, except he won't because well, duh. Instead he pulls the hand closer so that he can place a gentle kiss on those scarred knuckles. Angels singing in the heavens have nothing on the soft 'hmm' that Quentin lets out when Peter's lips brush his knuckles. Fingers tighten against his own slightly before relaxing once more and his breathing evens back out into sleep.

He could cry tears of joy, in fact he **is** crying, he's just so happy and relieved to see even that small light of hope at the end of the tunnel. Peter sniffles and tries to keep quiet not wanting to interrupt any restful healing Quentin is getting. It takes him a few minutes to get a hold of himself and when he does it feels like a weight has finally lifted off his shoulders. 

Quentin is going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay. Those thoughts run on repeat in his head for long minutes until the desperate strength that was keeping him awake putters out. His eyes stay closed longer and longer in between blinks until he falls asleep curled protectively around Quentin. He doesn't realize he has fallen asleep until he 'blinks' his eyes back open many hours later and sees Quentin's thumb moving as he strokes it against Peter's fingers. 

Peter's head shoots up and his breath catches when he sees Quentin's beautiful blue eyes open and looking at him with a tender expression. His lips are curved into that perfect soft smile that is for Peter and Peter alone. Every time he catches Quentin looking at him as if _he_ is the lucky one in their relationship Peter can't help but fall a little bit more in love. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Life got busy so writing got put on the side burner, but that turned out to be a good thing. This ending is a lot better than the original wishy washy one I had planned(sue me I only had it half planned because the other parts were more fun to write ha). 
> 
> Thank you all sooooooooo sooooooo much for reading and commenting! This has been a wild ride. I have a sweet little epilogue I wanna add on to the end, but Idk when I'll get to it. Also plan on going back and fixing up the chapter before this<strike>that I totally didn't rush</strike> but no ETA
> 
> Anyways~~
> 
> So for now this is the main story and I hope it was an enjoyable read ^_________^
> 
> <3 <3 <3 <3 <3


	35. Out of The Ashes a New Life Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *looks at chapter count guiltily* :x

Quentin never expected to wake up, he fully planned on sacrificing himself for those that he loved, but somehow, despite the odds stacked against him, his eyes opened up to see the day once more. The first thing he saw was a mess of brown curls laying on top of his chest and he knew right then and there that everything was right in the world. Peter was alive and so was he. What more could he ask for?

His recovery was slow, slower than it had ever been in his life. It was so slow that Peter became worried about complications and had used his powerful puppy dog eyes to get The Sorcerer Supreme himself to come check on Quentin. Which was no small feat considering the state of his order at the time, but none could resist Peter for long when he begs so sweetly and sincerely. The master of the wizards spent a great deal of time casting spell after spell and frowning more after each one.

Eventually he let out a sigh and gave them the bad news. Quentin would never again be able to wield magic, not his own, nor the magic of this world. The former doctor, in a rare show of good bedside manner, explained to them how coming into contact with the raw magics of this world had fundamentally altered Quentin. No longer was he entirely of Gaea, he was now part of this world as well.

The Last Champion of Gaea had used every last wisp of his own magic leaving himself vulnerable to the full effects of the Vortex. But it was not entirely a bad thing he had gone on to say. If it had not happened like it did Quentin surely would have faded from this universe long before they could have retrieved his gauntlets. As it stood the man from another universe is not so much of a foreign creature that the universe wished to expel. Now he was at least partly of this world and as such he would no longer require the use of the gauntlets to stay here.

Considering how they were used against him, and against those he loved, Quentin didn't mind the thought of never having to see them again. Quentin had thanked The Sorcerer Supreme as he left to go back to picking up the pieces of his scattered order. Once it was just the two of them again Quentin was quiet. He had a lot to think about, a fundamental part of him was gone forever and nothing would get it back.

How did that make him feel? 

He was saddened greatly to lose the last tangible connection he had to Gaea, but all he had to do was look down at his and Peter's entwined hands and he knew it would be okay. Whatever hardships, however difficult it would be for him to adjust-- he had Peter at his side.

Nothing else mattered.

As the months went on he slowly readjusted to life without his powers, but it was the little things that were the hardest for him. He found himself getting tired very easily without the support of his magic, and he had to learn to take care with eating and not over exerting himself. Once he no longer had his magic he learned so much more about what all it had done for him-- and all the things he never truly appreciated until they were gone. 

The first few months were the worst of it, after a while he learned how to take better care of himself like a normal person would. Because that was what he was now; normal. Soon enough he was able to leave the Avengers facility but it made a fissure of worry in his heart. Where would he go? He was no longer an Avenger, nor could he do magic so the two places of residence he had before all of this happened would not work, but then Peter had made an offer that proved once again that he was the bright one out of the two of them.

"We could like get an apartment together." He had said in a rush with his eyes darting every which way but avoiding Quentin's own as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I was already planning on moving out soon anyway and like it would be like, uh, really cool to see you more. And I could help you with stuff in case you still need it--even though I know you are doing so, so much better and all. But sometimes I worry and--" It's adorable the way his lover rambles when he really cares about something. Quentin had taken pity on him silencing him with a kiss then, and once they broke apart he had looked into Peter's eyes and said just one word.

"Yes."

Living with Peter, waking every morning and having Peter's bright smile be the first thing he saw? Try as he might he lacked the words to express just how much it meant to him. How much having Peter in his life meant to him. Though his words were always lacking when trying to express the depth of his love for Peter, he was sure to tell him everyday, many times a day, that he loved him anyway. 

He showered his young lover in affection every chance he got both because Peter deserves the world and selfishly for himself. He liked doing little things for Peter like learning how to make sandwiches just how Peter likes them and packing his backpack with little snacks for when he goes on patrol, or rubbing his back and soothing his muscles after a hard day of getting particularly stubborn cats out of trees. Anything and everything he could do to make his lover smile.

Each and every morning the cracks in his heart left from the loss of his family on Gaea were getting filled in with Peter's love until one day after a couple of months of living together Quentin woke up in the morning and felt content, whole, and complete in a way he had not truly felt in many years. There would always be the ache for those he lost, the ache of missing Gaea's warmth in his chest, but that morning he could honestly say it didn't bother him. Not really.

One of Gaea's teachings was that life is ever changing, and it should not be feared but embraced. When one suffers a loss, it merely opens up room for something, or someone new to warm one's heart. The person that he was is gone and he can never be that person again, and yet he has come to like the person he is now. 

No longer will his loyalties ever be divided again, he doesn't have to live for an entire world and its people. The only person he has to live for is the one snoring softly in his arms. It felt like ripping out his own heart when he had to choose to leave his family to try and save Gaea, a betrayal. 

Never again would he have to make that choice.

He would choose Peter every time because he is Quentin's whole world now. He kissed the top of Peter's head, earning a soft hum from his lover as he promised silently to watch over him until his dying days. Though his life was nothing like he could have ever imagined it would turn out to be, he was so grateful for it. What he does, his titles, none of that mattered to him because he has the most loving, caring, and all around sweetest person in his life. He wouldn't trade it for anything, even though it is still a strange role reversal for the former Champion.

Now he is the one who waits at home for his heroic lover to return from his sometimes dangerous job. It could be nerve wracking at times not being able to fly alongside just in case Peter could use another hand but he reminded himself that Peter was doing just fine before they met. He is a strong and capable hero in his own right, and always has been. He had faith that his lover would always come home to him, and it didn't hurt to know that the young hero has so many others to call upon if he was ever in need. Quentin doesn't have to be the one to save him if a time ever comes, he knows and trusts in the other heroes of this world to do what they do best and keep him safe.

Although Quentin had hung up his cape for good not all the Avengers seemed to realize it. One day Tony had come by their apartment while Peter was out on patrol, which in of itself wasn't too unusual. The two of them had been slowly regrowing their friendship for a long time now, and almost dying together sure did help to speed up the healing and mutual forgiveness. What did make the visit unusual was the pronounced fidgeting of the older man, a tell for when he was going to say or do something, anything, having to do with feelings.

Tony had gotten much better at admitting he had feelings, even going so far as to show them on occasion to those outside his family but it went against his nature. Against how he was raised so even then he struggled with it. Quentin waited patiently offering the man a cup of coffee as both something for the man's hands to be occupied with and because he knew the man lived off of the stuff. It wasn't until the man drained the cup in one go, as if he were taking a shot of alcohol, that he spoke.

"So I was thinking, I'm always thinking about everything all the time. But anyway, what I've been thinking about a lot recently is that it wouldn't be very difficult to install my arc reactor tech inside your suit. Would be really easy actually since your smarty pants self knows the ins and outs of your own tech and could maybe--probably--okay definitely-- improve on the designs I already have working." Tony tapped his fingers along the now empty cup before taking a deep breath and looking at Quentin for the first time since he came into their kitchen. 

"Just because, you know, _that_ happened doesn't mean you have to give it up. I mean, just look at me!" Tony gestured grandly at himself with his arms out wide. "I'm as human as they get and I still fly around saving the day--well not so much anymore cause of the family and you know getting" He made a weird face clearly disgusted with what he was going to say next, "_old_. But I still can and I am good at it. Damn good at it.

"Besides you already got the brain for it, your suit is magnificent, and that means a lot coming from me. It is truly a work of art in both style and engineering, and while you aren't me. No one is _me_, but that mind of yours is a force to be reckoned with in its own right. So what do you say? ~Do you wanna build a supersuit?~" Tony sing-songed the last part, it must have been a reference to something but Quentin was still so far behind he didn't understand it, but Tony was used to his 'sick references' going over Quentin's head.

Quentin considered it. He knew that his magic wasn't the only good thing about him, he had helped technology make leaps and bounds on Gaea after all. He could do it, Tony had already shown him the inner workings of his Iron Man suit and it really wouldn't be all that difficult to change his suit to run off the arc reactor instead of his long gone magic.

He imagined himself being able to fly alongside Peter again. Gaea, was it tempting and yet he found that he didn't want that life back. His simple life with Peter was too precious a thing for him to give up. He had already had one lifetime of being a hero, it was past time to have his own life. He had died for one world, he didn't think it was selfish to not want to die for another and he already nearly did die for this one not so many months before.

Quentin and Peter had talked about the future together on many occasions while snuggled in bed with the lights down low. They talked about what they wanted to do, their hopes and their dreams. Quentin had brought up wanting to share his knowledge with this world--something Peter fully supported. He had so much more to offer than just flying in to save the day. He could, and planned to, share his knowledge of materials to help those in need. His suit's recycling abilities alone outclassed anything this world has to offer--even anything Tony Stark had--by light years.

So while taking back up the mantle of hero would soothe his ego for a time, it wasn't what he really wanted. He said as much to Tony who stared at him in complete shock. Actually stunned speechless, a feat that before that very moment Quentin had not thought possible. It took the billionaire a solid two minutes before he could speak again, though his mouth did open and close soundlessly a few times. He blinked rapidly for a moment as if rebooting like one of his machines and the next time he opened his mouth words actually came out.

"You're turning me down." He said it like he could not believe it but Quentin merely nodded. "You. Turning. ME, The Great Tony Stark. Down." Another nod from Quentin to which Tony shook his head at. "No one has ever, in the history of EVER turned down an opportunity to co-op on an engineering/sciencing project before. Who are you and what have you done with my friend? Do I need to enact another body snatchers protocol?"

"Look Tony," Quentin began trying to placate his friend, "I'm honored, I truly am. Your suit is the single most impressive piece of technology in the world." Tony threw his hands up ready to launch into another speech as if Quentin had made his own point, but Quentin raised a hand to forestall him. "And I know how fiercely you protect the secrets of your suits and how few people you would even let inside one, let alone teach how to make one. I am so grateful that you would even consider letting me inside that inner circle but I just can't.

"This life I have now with Peter? This simple, normal life? It's the first time I have ever had normal, I was born a Champion of Gaea, I was never meant to have something like this. And now that I have it? I am going to hold onto it with everything I got for as long as I can. I've already died a hero once, I think it's past time I got to live as a person now, don't you?"

Tony looked down at his hands, quiet for a moment as a multitude of emotions moved across his face. When he looked at Quentin again there was a light of understanding in his eyes, and pride? When he spoke again his voice was quiet and his tone was heartfelt.

"I could never retire, I tried. Lord have I tried. I thought when Morgan was born that would be that, but something always calls me back. It's probably in my blood, but if you can quit and stay away? I am jealous and really proud of your conviction and devotion. To Peter especially. 

"I know I wasn't always the biggest fan of you two, kind of hated you for a while to be perfectly honest." Tony admitted but his words held no malice. "But I couldn't have asked for a better person for the kid. I don't think anyone would have ever been good enough for him, but you? You'll do." 

It was high praise, Quentin could understand the sentiment of a father wanting someone perfect for their child. No one would have ever been good enough for his own daughter, but to get Tony's approval? It meant a lot, especially after how rocky their friendship had gotten during Quentin's courtship of Peter.

They both might have gotten a little misty eyed, but Tony would deny it with his last breath, and that's okay. Quentin proudly teared up enough for the both of them. 

After that they spoke of this and that for a time until just as Tony turned his back to leave something made Quentin stop him.

"Wait." Tony turned back around with a questioning look. "Maybe we could make that suit after all. But just for fun." The smile Tony gave him then and the skip in his step as he walked out the door tells Quentin he made the right choice. He doesn't have to be the hero, but that doesn't mean he can't have fun, and if there ever was a day that Peter would need him-- he could be there.

********

Another month goes by with naught but their day to day routine before something changes. Peter had stayed out late the night before, he had told Quentin to not wait up as he was busy with something(not dangerous he promised) and would be home much later than normal, but of course Quentin stayed up anyway. Try as he might he cannot sleep without knowing Peter is home safe, on top of that he finds sleeping in their bed by himself to be lonely. It's too big of a bed without Peter beside him or as it happens more often, a kin to the 8 armed octopus creatures of this world, wrapped around Quentin with their arms and legs hopelessly entangled--just how Quentin likes it.

When Peter had eventually gotten home he was unusually quiet, he normally liked to tell Quentin about his patrols and Quentin enjoyed listening, hanging on his every word. But not that night. Instead he said he was tired and after he changed went straight to bed. Barely a kiss goodnight before rolling over onto his side and slipping into sleep. 

It made Quentin worry.

Peter had said it wasn't dangerous, and he looked perfectly fine when he had come home and yet Quentin couldn't shake the feeling something wasn't right. He laid on his side staring at the pale exposed shoulder before him. Whatever it is, he needed to trust Peter, he would talk about it when he's ready. Quentin let out a tiny sigh and pushed away his worry instead shifting up so that he could spoon around Peter's back. He held on to the man's smaller frame once again marveling at how well their bodies fit together, and truth be told, he knows he will always be amazed by it.

By Peter.

His mind wandered as he thought about how perfect Peter is for him until he slowly slipped into sleep himself and when he woke the next morning it was Peter who was awake first and looking at him with a tender expression. 

"Good morning." Peter greets him leaning in to press a little kiss on Quentin's nose then rubbing his own nose against where he just kissed making the older man blush and smile. The perfect way to greet the day that has him forgetting all his worries from the night before.

"Good morning." Quentin replies brushing his lips against Peter's softly. The two of them nip playfully at each other's lips for a time, not pushing for more at least until Peter crawls on top of Quentin. . .and then they don't end up getting out of bed until much later.

This morning starts off much like they usually do with taking a shower, which leads to even more kissing and exploring hands, which ends up delaying breakfast even more, but neither of them mind one bit. Once they finally do make it to the kitchen Quentin goes to the fridge taking out eggs and bacon while Peter sets the table. The older man has had a lot of free time on his hands recently and has come to realize he really enjoys cooking. Which is a good thing because Peter really, really enjoys eating.

Enhanced metabolism and all that, and it makes Quentin's chest swell with pride to know he is providing for his lover. Even after a few short months Peter has started to fill out a little. He'll never be built like Quentin is, doesn't have the body type for it, but ever so slowly a thin, almost not there layer of fat has made it onto his lover in some places. 

At first Peter was appalled to discover it, having been ripped with almost no body fat ever since he was bit by that spider so long ago, but Quentin was quick to reassure him that he liked it. Loved it in fact. He argued that it was healthy to have a little extra, more calories on reserve if he really needs to push himself saving someone too. Besides, Peter likes his body just fine and he has far more extra than than his skinny lover could ever have. Peter couldn't argue with that as he was always commenting on how comfortable it is to rest on Quentin's chest. 

While Quentin is only starting his second helping of eggs Peter is already on this fourth and eyeing a fifth but he turns back and looks at Quentin with an odd expression on his face. Almost as if he is nervous.

"So I was thinking you've been cooped up for a while and since today is my off day from patrolling maybe it would nice to go out? Maybe to a park or something?" 

He wasn't hiding per say, but the thought of having to explain himself or what happened to him on the off chance he was recognized made his stomach twist. Though he doesn't watch the news anymore he did when they first moved in as he had nothing better to do at the time and it was filled with speculation on the disappearance of Mysterio. 

The Avengers and Stephen Strange had done a press conference not long after to ease worries after the near miss that shocked the world when faintly green smoke had crisscrossed the world for a few minutes before dissipating as if it was never there. They did not get into details and only said they prevented any harm from falling onto the world and what they saw was just Mysterio's last hurrah, as Tony put it, that saved the day.

There was a flurry of questions about the missing hero then("What did you mean by last hurrah?"), but then Stephen raised his hand and the crowd went silent. Whether that was due to the reverence of the mysterious leader of the sorcerers making a rare public appearance or due to him casting a spell remains a matter of debate. 

"As the attack against this world and its people was magical in nature both my order and Quentin suffered hardships and much loss to prevent a complete disaster. Many of my order were lost fighting the forces that would have done us harm and those of us who remain are doing all that we can to rebuild. Quentin's role in fighting off the attack has unfortunately left him unable to take up the mantle of Mysterio, but he is doing well otherwise."

Stephen paused and gave the crowd his best impression of a stern professor silencing any more questions before they could be asked. He nodded to himself satisfied with the ongoing silence before he continued speaking.

"I know that many of you are worried at the loss of so many of Earth's protectors, Quentin amongst them, but we still have the full regiment of the Avengers and X Men on call. As always we will be ready for anything that comes our way, I can assure you of this." He takes a deep breath and lets out a soft sigh. "But for the sake of those we have lost and those who remain, I would ask of you all to please be kind. It is not easy to have your life turned upside down, as all of you well know. So I must ask on behalf of my people and Quentin who cannot be here today; Please do not harass any of us for details or hound us with paparazzi. We are grieving, we are healing. Please let us do it in peace and at our own pace. Then, when the time comes, those of us who care to speak of it will instead seek you out."

It was a touching speech that pulled at Quentin's heart strings, but it could not completely erase that fissure of fear of a microphone being shoved in his face and difficult questions being asked. So he has hidden himself at home, he knows that Peter knows exactly why he has declined all offers to go out to eat but his young lover has never called him on it or made it an issue. After a while he stopped offering until this morning, so it is no mystery why he might be nervous.

Quentin stops with his fork half to his mouth as he considers it. Really considers it for the first time. All the other times Peter had brought it up Quentin was already declining almost before Peter had finished asking. It made him feel bad, guilty even, that he couldn't give Peter a normal relationship where they went out on dates together, but Peter, sweet, kind, understanding Peter, always said it was okay and never pushed.

Quentin knows that if he says no Peter wouldn't push, wouldn't get upset with him. He would drop it and they would talk about something else, but for the first time Quentin doesn't want to say no. He really _has_ been cooped up for too long. He puts the fork full of eggs into his mouth and chews slowly while he considers it.

Okay yes, he is more than a little nervous, maybe even a tiny bit scared to go outside and possibly get recognized but then again he looks so different from how he did when the world last knew him the odds that _anyone_ would recognize him is low. He's a different person when he looks in the mirror now and he likes it. 

His hair had already grown long when he was held in captivity so he just left it happy to see someone he doesn't hate in the mirror. Being held prisoner by someone with your own face is something Quentin would never wish on anyone. The first time he looked in a mirror he was afraid to see that monster looking back at him, but his beard and hair were too long and unkempt-- drastically different from the well kept appearance he was sporting before. 

Different from the monster who had hurt Peter.

He doesn't know what he would have done if he had seen that monster staring back at him. Probably something foolish like hitting the mirror and leaving glass strewn about the floor. Tony had come by once during his rehabilitation with his old grooming supplies, gifting them once again to Quentin with an off hand remark about it being good for the soul to reclaim his humanity. Quentin had quietly thanked him and used them the next chance he got but when Tony visited again a few days later he stopped in surprise.

Clearly the billionaire had expected Quentin to return to looking like he had before with his hair short and neat but Quentin had chosen to keep it long, just brushing his shoulders. He had trimmed his beard a little thinner than it was before so that his cheek bones were more pronounced, not wanting the thicker look he had before but still wanting some beard on his face. Quentin had tensed expecting an uncomfortable conversation that he was not ready for but Tony had just loudly exclaimed that he was an idiot and didn't say anything else on the matter much to Quentin's relief.

Peter had made one singular comment on enjoying his new look right after Quentin had groomed himself for the first time. There was a tense look about his lover's face when Tony had given him the grooming tools, but it disappeared when he saw Quentin had kept the hair long.

It was easy to read between the lines. 

Of course his lover, the light of his life, would be hurting too. That bastard had toyed with him for months--and tried to kill him all the while wearing Quentin's face. Quentin didn't like to think about it, and Peter flatly refused to talk about it besides saying it could have been worse and that it didn't matter because everything was okay now. Quentin just had to trust in his lover to know himself, but he has always been very self aware and way better at that then Quentin anyways.

Quentin finishes chewing and sets his fork down on his plate before turning to look at Peter. He had clearly been watching with anticipation while Quentin had thought about it, there is a guarded hopefulness in his expression and Quentin hates that he put that there. Mind made up he answers and the resulting smile that breaks over Peter's face is one he will keep with him for the rest of his days.

"Okay."

"Awesome!" Peter exclaims fist pumping and even if somehow the trip outside turns out horrible Quentin thinks that it will have been worth it just to make Peter this happy. 

They finish eating and cleaning the dishes they used before going to get dressed. Peter digs through their closet and starts laughing.

"Oh man this will be just like old times!" Peter turns around holding the hoodie he had worn the first time they hung out as themselves and not their hero alter egos. The older man's stomach twists in a pleasant way as he too picks out the same outfit he had worn that day. 

It is fitting that they go out like this today, another big first step in their relationship. He is no longer Mysterio, but instead he goes out as someone much better than that. Someone who has Peter's love. 

Even if he hadn't lost his powers, if a magical being had offered him a deal: his powers for the love of Peter? He would not have even hesitated. Heroes age and die, but love lives on-- a stronger force than anyone can ever truly know. And their love is the stuff of legends, transcending universes as fate pulled them together.

As they were always meant to be.

With those thoughts in mind he takes that first big step out into the world again and no longer feels fear but hope and joy in its place. He has the sun on his face, the wind in his hair, and a warm hand within his own-- he's on top of the world. He just stands in the sunlight basking in it for a moment before he squeezes Peter's hand and moves it up so that he can place a gentle kiss on the back of his hand.

"Thank you Peter. I really needed this." 

"I know, and uh me too. So uh thanks for saying yes." They walk hand in hand with no hurry down the streets, but the first time a person passes by them Quentin tenses momentarily. The person walks on by without so much as glance in their direction. He does this a few more times with each person who walks by until his shoulders slowly, inch by inch, relax back down as he realizes he was worried over nothing. 

After that the walk becomes even more enjoyable as he looks around and sees the streets filled with life. He'll sometimes stop and pull in Peter for a kiss, just because he's so happy and carefree. One of Peter's favorite activities is kissing so he enthusiastically returns each and every kiss--especially since they are in public. It was always a sore spot for the younger man that they couldn't openly show affection for one another, but now that he can? You bet he's enjoying it.

They break away to catch their breath after one particularly steamy kiss that was perhaps a little much for being out in public but Quentin finds he doesn't care all that much. 

"I'm so glad you came out, this is amazing." Peter says a little breathless.

"You're amazing." Quentin counters.

"Yeah they are actually calling me The Amazing Spider Man now, did I tell you?"

"Only about a hundred times." Quentin teases him, earning a blush and a playful shove.

"Okay so I was thinking since you're being so brave that maybe I can be too. Maybe we could take the subway to New York? Go walk through Central Park?" Peter seems a little nervous but determined. Quentin wasn't the only one to have issues after his alter ego decided to change their lives forever.

Peter already had problems with tight spaces ever since Toomes, but to have it happen again? It was beyond deplorable and a huge set back to Peter's recovery. They both often wake up screaming and crying from nightmares, one man because he watches himself become a villain and the other from being buried alive. Again.

But time goes on and does what it does best; heal wounds. The nightmares have been getting less and less frequent where they can sometimes go whole weeks without one or the other waking up in a sweat needing to be held and comforted. Quentin thinks that it is likely that Peter would relapse and have a nightmare sparked by today if they do go underground though, and he doesn't like the thought of it.

"Are you sure? It's a big step Peter." Quentin says worried about Peter and not wanting him to push himself too much too soon but Peter just shakes his head.

"Yeah I know, but I think I'm ready. Besides today has been sooo freaking awesome already so even if I get down there and can't do it I don't think it would bother me. Cause like this has been so great already you know?"

"I know exactly what you mean." Quentin says pulling the shorter man against him for a sweet kiss. 

As it turns out the beginning of the subway trip was not a pleasant experience for either of them. Tight underground spaces for Peter and too many wandering eyes for Quentin, but after they get off the first one and catch their breath for a good 20 minutes and they have both regained their composure they walk hand in hand onto the next train and it isn't nearly so bad. After Quentin has gotten used to the occasional looks he can now focus more on keeping Peter calm by rubbing soothing circles against his back and squeezing his hand whenever his pulse begins to quicken. Peter shoots him grateful looks the whole time until eventually he calms down enough to rest his head on Quentin's shoulder and enjoy the bumpy ride.

Once they finally exit the subway and step back into the fresh air it feels like a victory. They share a look both so proud of each other there are no words. They walk through the busy streets of New York and stop to grab ice cream from a local vender as they slowly make their way to the park. It's not a long walk, nor a short one, but it is a very pleasant one. Maybe even the best walk Quentin has ever been on. Soon enough they arrive at Central Park and as Quentin sees the first tall tree he feels a knot loosen in his chest. 

He has always loved nature and although he loves the apartment he shares with Peter he will always miss the cities of Gaea. Their people had lived alongside nature choosing to build around it instead of tearing it down like the people of this world have done in many places. As they walk along the winding paths of the park a peace comes over Quentin, he just feels better when surrounded by trees and life. 

It feels like home.

They walk slowly as Quentin enjoys the sights, sounds and smells around him. Peter leads them tugging on Quentin's hand when he stops for too long watching a bird or to listen to the rustling of leaves in the wind. The older man turns his head to look at Peter whose face is doing that strange thing again, much like the night before. 

"Come on there is something I want to show you." Peter says before Quentin can ask so he just nods and follows along. He spends more time watching Peter move than the trees now suddenly very suspicious about this 'random' idea his lover had this morning. He gets the feeling that this was all planned, and that if he had said no this morning it would have been a huge mistake. But whatever it is that Peter has planned? Quentin is sure he'll love it. His lover has always had the very best of surprises for him, and the last time he had a surprise related to a park it had turned out unbelievably great for the both of them.

They slowly pick up speed as the excitement builds, and it's not until they walk off the path way into the grass and come up to a building that Quentin begins to wonder at what it could be. But when Peter turns back to wink at him before walking through the building--not a door, but the building wall itself Quentin's eyebrows shoot up. Peter tugs at his arm until he too walks through the building as if it was not there and that is when he sees it.

His eyes spot a small sapling growing amongst a type of grass not native to New York. Not native to America, nor even this world. Peter's hand slips through his slack fingers as his whole world narrows down to the grass and that sapling, that impossible sapling.

It's a Gaea tree. 

He would know it anywhere, in any form. They are revered amongst his people for bringing life and was the first great gift Gaea had given to her people. Of all the trees on Gaea it had the best shade, the ripest fruit, and the sturdiest branches. 

Quentin feels a dampness on his knees, he had fallen to them before the sapling without his notice. Leaning over with care as to not disturb the grass he reaches out with a shaking hand and just barely brushes the tip of one finger along a tiny leaf. He sucks in a great gulp of air as he feels the texture of something that could not possibly exist and yet is before his very eyes. Needing confirmation that what he is seeing is real he turns his head to look at where he had thought he left Peter but instead finds his lover kneeling carefully away from the grass beside him.

Peter's face is full of love and happiness for him. Peter reaches out a hand and brushes Quentin's cheek and it is then that he realizes he is crying. He weeps tears of pure joy having not thought to ever see any part of his home ever again, let alone something as precious as life. Quentin reaches out grabbing Peter's hand as it moves away from his face, catching it and bringing it to his lips so that he can place a reverent kiss against his palm for this gift though he does not understand how it could be possible.

Perhaps it was Gaea's will flowing through him as he fought the magics in the Vortex, his only thoughts at the time were images of life growing on Gaea. Of all the powers granted to her Champions creating life was not one of them. That was always solely her domain, at least until the cataclysm that had all but destroyed their world had forced her to become something new with her favored son. 

He had sown the seeds of life in her barren soils under her guidance but had never thought to try it on his own. It just wasn't something he had ever considered a possibility and yet. . .

Here before him grows proof to the contrary. He had not meant to do this, only wanted to fight the spell meant to cause death and destruction so he used the most powerful thing he knew of to battle it: Life. 

Death is a part of life, but there can be no death without life and as such it had won out. Gaea's purest and most simple of teachings; to value life was upheld and proven to be greater of the two.

He clings to Peter as great sobs wrack his frame. He is overwhelmed, and overcome with emotion. The little Gaea sapling growing in secrecy inside of one of the most famous parks in the world is living proof of where he came from. It will stand as a monument to all that Gaea and her people stood for. Though his own world is beyond his reach he has but to come here to see a piece of it. 

Of her.

Peter rubs soothing circles into his back as he lets out the plethora of emotions he had been holding back since he first stepped through the portal into this world. He cannot believe it, and yet he must. The older man feels little drops of water hit his neck and that is when he realizes Peter is crying too. Crying for him, so happy for him that it too brings him to tears which just makes Quentin cry harder and hold on even tighter.

They spend long minutes within each other's arms kneeling in the park next to the impossible tree. Slowly the shaking in his shoulders stops and he can take in a breath without it going jagged. He pulls back just enough so he can look into his lover's brown eyes, words still escape him but he can see understanding shining within them. Peter cracks a sideways smile.

"Guess there is no way I'll be able to top this surprise now is there?" It surprises a bark of laughter that feels both too loud for this reverent place and just right at the same time. He rushes forward knocking Peter onto his back and then begins peppering him with kisses all the while letting out happy laughter between each kiss. Peter giggles at the attention and the long missed spark of carefree joy from his lover.

When Quentin pulls back and looks down into Peter's deep brown eyes as he laughs loudly he feels a tug in his chest. An overwhelming need. The smile slips off his face and his expression grows serious as he realizes that this is it. This is the happiest moment of his entire life, and there is one and only one thing that could make it better.

"Marry me." He asks, unsure why he never asked before. There could never be anyone better for him or more perfect than Peter--he's known that from almost the first moment they properly met. And yet he waited, he never really thought about why he waited but now he knows. 

He was waiting for this moment, this one perfect moment. And the one perfect word that will make him the happiest man on the planet.

"Yes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D And that is the main story folks! 
> 
> I have an epilogue written that I will be posting later on that follows them through the years with highlights of their lives if you're into that sort of thing. It's just a nice little fluffy bow to wrap up with story with. 
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading and commenting it's been a wild ride and I loved every moment of it! <3 <3 <3


	36. Epilogue

They had a lovely wedding, bigger than either of them thought it would be but that is only because they never imagined having so many wonderful people in their lives. It was by invitation only, just their close friends. Which meant all the Avengers and Sorcerers were in attendance, something Ned was absolutely star struck by and loving it. They kept the press out, which was easy enough considering Quentin had yet to make a public appearance so interest had been waning of late.

The X Men and the re-purposed tech from his evil alter ego was used to trick the world and its villains into seeing the Avengers out and about in the world when they were really all at Tony Stark's residence for the wedding. When Tony had told him that they were going to use 'that asshole's tech' to make this happen Quentin laughed at the irony. It felt good to make something beautiful out of something that was so horrible, it was the way of life and growth.

It was a beautiful wedding, and many tears were shed amongst even the most stoic of their heroic friends. They had chosen to not exchange rings but instead Quentin knelt as Peter placed an amulet around Quentin's neck that he made by his own two hands as a surprise for his soon-to-be husband. He had made it a reflection of the one Quentin had given to him so long ago. 

Whereas Peter's amulet is a silver Spider atop the green triangle that had adorned Quentin's cape, the amulet he made for Quentin was a lush green Gaea tree with a red and blue spider crawling up its trunk. He had kept it secret from his lover and had been lying for months about some of his patrols where he instead was at Tony's workshop working on this.

The look in Quentin's eyes when he sees it for the first time made every late night more than worth it. He gasps and goes a little weak at the knees. Like I said, this wedding had a lot of happy crying going on. By the time they each finished their vows not a single cheek was dry and when they kissed there was loud cheering.

Unsurprisingly Thor's shout was the loudest of them. "A most joyous union of a love so pure and true that even the Gods would be jealous of their happiness!" He then later shouted about "A most vigorous and youthful honeymoon" but thankfully he was silenced by a flask of mead being shoved in his face before he could make either of the grooms turn a brighter shade of red. Steve had to pull him aside and explain to the Norse God that while, yes that is a good thing, but no, they should not comment on it. 

It was a very entertaining time for all nearby enough to hear the man out of time explain in simple terms about social niceties as his face got more and more red as he had to explain _things_. All in all a good time was had by everyone, especially the two newly weds. They kept catching one another staring at the other when they weren't looking with a look of wonder and awe on their faces. It was adorable how much the two of them loved each other. As if in daily awe of their luck at getting someone who just fits with them so perfectly.

Their married life was much like before, but with more giggling and calling each other 'husband' as much as humanly possible. 

After a time Quentin did start working on sharing his knowledge with this world filling his life with a sense of purpose that rivaled what he had felt as a Champion. After working behind the scenes with a few of Tony's most trusted and capable scientist friends he revealed to the world his first work, a thin suit that was completely heat proof, fire proof and boasted that ability to recycle 100% of water and most importantly: it was relatively cheap to produce. 

He also went on to apologize about his absence and silence in the many months since he nearly died. He confirmed that Mysterio was gone forever, but in his place he will be working to help make the world a better place in a new way. While some would always get on a hero for not doing more the overwhelming majority of people were over the moon to hear the beloved hero was okay, and better yet--sickeningly happy with his new husband, one Peter Parker.

Peter had hid his identity out of fear; for himself, his friends, and his family, but a life lived in fear is not a life worth living. He had spent long nights talking with Quentin about wanting to reveal himself and his husband fully supported him. After all he's already done it a few times and it's turned out great--they still talk to and get updates from Kevin and his new family. Peter had then brought the idea to Pepper who had legitimately squealed and gave the younger man a crushing hug. For being a baseline human she was surprisingly strong. 

She worked her magic getting the numbers of approval and the possible risks involved and told Peter it looked good, really good. Besides it's not like May, Ned, and MJ weren't already being watched by Stark Tech 24/7 anyway. Which was news to Peter, and sparked yet another argument between the Stark-Potts power couple.

"Tony you can't just put people on surveillance without telling them!"

"Can and did." A vein pulses on her forehead as she listens to her husband's flippant response over the phone. Peter and Quentin slowly take a step back as they see a worrying red glow on one of her hands. She glances to the side at them and then back to her own hand and with a flick of her wrist it disappears. She takes in a deep breath to calm herself before she continues talking to her man-child of a husband. 

"That's not the point and you know it. We've talked about this, and we will be talking about it again tonight." She says as she hangs up on her husband, probably one of the only people in the world who would dare to do so.

She turns back to them and assures them it will be handled and people will be informed(albeit after the fact). She goes on to talk to them about her own experiences with being a loved one of a hero, and how yes at first it was nerve wracking but Tony has a lot of practice at this now and he's very good at it("The best Pep!"). She advises Peter that if anything should go wrong, though she cannot imagine anyone ever holding a grudge against The Amazing Spider Man with how sweet he is in and out of the mask, but if it did, that it would be handled quickly.

They took her advice to heart during Quentin's video of his return to the world, his invention's designs free to the public, and last but not least his marriage to Peter Parker, or as the world knew him: Spider Man.

It was the most watched video in history within the first week. Tony was both pissy about it and very proud that they broke the internet. He did say it was cheating to have that many reveals at once and so of course it shouldn't compare to his "I am Iron Man" video--but no one was really listening while he rambled on about it.

Things were a little more crazy after that for the two love birds, now that the world knew their faces(or Quentin's new face in his case) they were recognized and stopped when they went out more and more often. 99.9999% of the time it was a fan, or someone thanking them and that .0001% that was bad neither of them let it get to them. Cause really? Who cares what someone else thinks when you've got the love of your life beside you cheering you on?

After a while the media frenzy died down so that they could once again live their lives mostly in peace, aside from one misguided criminal having the bright idea that Quentin would be easy pickings because he lost his powers. He could not have been more wrong. Turns out Spider Man has a scary angry side when his husband's safety is on the line. The criminal wet his pants when the usually happy go lucky Spider Man showed up promising hellfire if a single hair was out of place on his husband's head.

Good times.

The years went on and new heroes came onto the scene and with them some of the older ones retired. Captain America was one of them, along with Tony Stark. No one really bought into Tony retiring, after all this was his 6th retirement announcement so no one thought it would stick, but they were wrong. Peter himself eventually decided he would take an extended vacation from heroing so he could explore his first love: science.

The two of them bought a plot of land in a rural area outside of New York proper along one of the ley lines. Though Quentin would never again regain the use of magic he remained sensitive to it and it just felt right to be near a ley line. They had chosen this house because of both the proximity to a ley line and the forest surrounding the back of the property. Quentin would wake every morning and go stand or sit on the back porch with either a cup of coffee or tea as the mood suited him and listen to the life of the forest. While it wasn't as soothing as sitting under the branches of the Gaea tree in central park, it still helped to center him.

People had begun noticing strange plants growing on their property a few months after the world was wrapped in a web of green mist but most thought nothing of it. It wasn't until Quentin had made his first appearance back that people began questioning him on it. Almost overnight it was a sensation, a new scientific marvel that scientists all around the world were eager to study. Often Quentin was called upon for his expert knowledge and insight.

The Sorcerer Supreme had long since dropped the magical veil he had set up over the one in central park and people from all over the state flocked to it. At each Sanctum there was one tree spawned by the Vortex that would tower over all others growing at rates far exceeding those of their brethren growing elsewhere along ley lines. A consensus was reached across the world to mark all land containing a Gaea tree or other plant life originating from Gaea as protected lands. Hefty fines and jail times were instated for any that would harm the endangered and rare life but very, very few ever tried to do harm to them.

And those that did? They found out quickly that it wasn't just the government protecting the trees, the very Earth itself was. Well, at least it's magic was. Those who approached the trees with intent to do harm found themselves suffering a series of unfortunate accidents that while none were serious in their own right(stubbing one's toe or tripping over nothing) when added up it turned into a very bad day. Most wouldn't even get to the Gaea tree before they gave up on their plans, but the very, very few who did?

Well let's just say maybe there is something to witch doctor curses. Word and rumors spread as they do, and before long no one would dare harm a tree lest they wished to suffer an entire lifetime of bad luck.

Quentin and Peter would travel at least once a week, and sometimes more, to go see the Gaea tree in central park. Quentin liked to spend long hours sitting underneath her branches as he thought about his life and how it could not have turned out better--especially with Peter leaning against him while he reads a book in the shade. He gets recognized each and every time he comes to this tree, but by some unspoken rule of courtesy no one will bother him while he is here. It is after all a sacred place for the man, and he is grateful every time he left to enjoy the feeling of home in peace. 

The tree now stands 50 feet tall with long thick branches spreading out casting more and more of the park in shade as it grows. It would be considered fully grown by Gaean Standards, but it grew in a fraction of the time it should have--another gift of it being born of magic. It was now the perfect maturity for another of Gaea's traditions.

When they had talked years before about getting married Peter had asked him about what it was like in his world and if they wanted to do that here, but sadly it wasn't feasible at the time. They instead married in the traditions of Peter's people with the promise of marrying in the Gaean way when they could. As Quentin rests his back against the tree and looks up through its many branches he feels it in his heart that it's time. 

Where their first wedding was a smaller affair their Gaean wedding was anything but. The entire world was invited to watch, both out of a kindness of showing some of his people's culture and because of the traditions themselves. When people were married on Gaea whole towns would come out even if they did not know the people getting married. It was a cause for the whole community to celebrate whenever one of their people found and strengthened their soul bond. 

A day full of merrymaking and a lively party full of dancing and music was what entailed most of the celebration--much to Thor's enjoyment. "No offense but I like this way much better, although it could use a good fight or two." Followed by Clint shaking his head and muttering "Thor, no" under his breath but it was too late. Steve, the retired-but forever Mother of the Avengers, launched into an explanation about how not every social gathering needed a fight("I do not see why not") and in fact could be considered really insensitive to others' cultures to always be suggesting it.

Thousands of people from all around New York and the world showed up to the wedding in Central park and it was broadcast live for those who could not make it. All in all the actual ceremony itself was simple, some might even call it a let down from all the lively dancing that led up to it--but to most it was perfect. There was no need for a minister or the like to oversee the affair as the two who would be married vowed to cherish one another and to help each other grow as their bond grows daily. 

In that way it did not differ too much from their first wedding, besides being under a nice big tree. At least it didn't until it came to the end when the two of them closed their eyes and placed their hands on the trunk of the tree promising to let their bond flourish. It was then that the tree shook. The whole tree, right down to its roots, if anyone had been caring to monitor at that time(unsurprisingly more than a few of the scientists present did). It could not have been caused by the wind or anything else but some mystical ability known only to the tree itself and the Last Champion of Gaea.

When the tree stopped shaking a single acorn lay on the ground between the couple and they picked it up together holding it between their hands reverently. At the time it was the single rarest thing on the planet, one of a kind. Scientists around the world were always confused on how the Gaea tree reproduced but that was one of the few things Quentin had kept his lips shut about. Just telling them "You'll see." At the time they were very frustrated, but those present to watch it happen for the first time were grateful for the experience. 

After Peter and Quentin's wedding it became a new thing for married couples to try the ceremony to see if it would work for them. At first after everyone who tried and failed it was assumed that either they weren't soul mates after all or that it only worked because Quentin was from Gaea. It wasn't until Stephen Strange and his soulmate performed the ceremony in front of a modest gathering of Sorcerers, Avengers, and some public officials that it worked for two people from this planet for the first time.

I could get into the details of their special bond, but that is a story for another time, but let's just say that their soul bond, while it did not transcend universes per say, it too was the stuff of legends and no less special. After that a few more cases hit the news of it working for others around the world, so while soul mates were incredibly rare they still did happen here. Another cause for celebration!

This was not something that could be defined or measured with science alone, it was a sort of magic but not one well understood on this planet. At least not yet. Love is a powerful thing, as is the soul, and the love between soul mates doubly so. Gaea's first great gift was not actually the Gaea tree per say, but it was the tangible proof of the soul bonds between her people. It took confirming a soul bond beneath it's branches for it to offer a single acorn.

That acorn would represent their love in its purest form and was meant to be buried near one's home as a proof of their soul bond. As they took care of one another so too would they be taking care of their Gaea tree. Those who showered their loved ones with affection and supported them through both the difficult times and the good had much larger Gaea trees than others who did not care for their bonded so. Slowly more and more Gaea trees were born this way and some grew to great heights or branched off beautifully like Stephen and his soul mate's.

But none could compare to the one that started them all.

Quentin's and Peter's tree would end up becoming the tallest and most lush Gaea tree in all history. A monument to their legendary love that spanned the centuries. It weathered wars, and invasions but remained unshakable and as sturdy as the love that created it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> T-t-that's all folks! 
> 
> This had been a wild, awesome ride writing this and I hope you all have enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! <3 <3 <3
> 
> Will probably be writing little stories that never made it into the work in the extras work I got going on, but might just take a breather and go back to my other projects that have been sitting in the sidelines while I wrote this monster haha.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! ^___________^
> 
> Edit: I went back and put this sucker through a word processor for the first time(I was basically writing this on wordpad before). . .man you all were way too nice to me for how many mistakes I made and all the wrong words I used haha. <3 <3 <3


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